Codename Krakatoa
by obedientlittlevictor
Summary: Radio silence from Annie after ditching her ride from Hong Kong leads Auggie to send in the calvary, Codename Krakatoa. This is the story of Annie's long road home.
1. Chapter 1

**PART ONE**

_"If your girl is not in this fucking restaurant, I swear to God, Auggie."_

_"She's not my girl, Krakatoa."_

_"Bullshit and we both know it. You staged an unsanctioned, off-books rescue mission involving a former operative with alleged ties to a competing spy service and a crazy stamp on the record. That's not something you do for the girl next door. And definitely not _three times_. Hell, I was your partner and you didn't do it for me once."_

_"Hey! This is the second time. And don't start on that. You know that—"_

_"Shut up. Don't insult me. I know about Russia. The original Hong Kong. _This_. That's three that you will admit to. What else have you sacrificed for her, Aug?"_

_"She's worth it. She just needs to know we're looking for her."_

_"You keep telling me that. Why is she running? Auggie, you have to think logically here. You sent her on a boat from HK to Taiwan, and what does she do? Hop on the first available boat to Bali, illegally I might add. It's dumb fucking luck that I'm here and my contacts still like me. What if she doesn't want us looking for her, dumbass? She's running for a reason, and there's no immediate threat in the vicinity. Her mission is complete. She eliminated her target and was on transport back to base. She was supposed to make it back home. Why is she running?"_

_"I—I don't know, Kraka. Just, please. Find her. I—fuck." _

_"Do you love her, Auggie?" Silence on the other line. "Fucking hell, Anderson."_

_"Krakatoa, complete your mission. Make contact. We will debrief when I land. My flight's about to take off and I need to be on that damn plane to Jakarta. See you in 5 hours. Follow protocol about contact."_

_"This isn't my first mission, Aug. I know what I'm doing. I'll find her, but it's up to her if she wants to come back. If she even wants to talk to you."_

That was six hours ago. His flight should have landed in Ngura Rai International an hour ago, giving him plenty of time to collect his bags and find his way to the apartment. Codename Krakatoa. _Haven't heard that in a while_, she thought bitterly. She adjusted her niqab and hoped Annie arrived soon enough.

"Wanita Amerika selalu makan di sini sehari-hari di 15:00?" She checked briefly with the young Indonesian girl working at the counter.

"Selalu, ibu," the girl affirmed.

"'Ma kasih, nona." She slipped the girl a 5,000 bill and smiled before putting her finger to where her lips were covered by the black veil.

The girl nodded her understanding of the secrecy and glanced toward the door at the new customer. "'Ia, wanita Amerika, ibu." _Ah, so this is Annie._

Krakatoa glanced at the brunette as she took a seat at the end of the bar at the restaurant. The vantage point was close to the kitchen and back door with the entire restaurant in her view. _Smart girl. At least her training hasn't left her. _She grabbed her tea and strode over to her new friend's table in time to hear her order tea in broken Indonesian and open her laptop. "Permisi?" She pointed to the seat next to Annie.

"Uh, ya. Bisa, bisa," Annie smiled gently.

"Bicara Bahasa?" Krakatoa asks unnecessarily to a flustered look. "Or English?" She fakes a thick Indonesian accent a bit too well.

"I'm sorry, I don't speak Indonesian. Do you know much English?"

She laughs heartily, because yes, of course, obviously she speaks English but Annie won't know that for a while. "Ya, sedikit. Very little. I am ask that you are America?"

"Yes, yes, I'm from America. I take it you are from Indonesia?"

"Ya, I am Indonesian. My name is Kraka. My friend own restaurant. Do you here on the vacation?"

"Kraka, it is nice to meet you. My name is—" Annie stutters for a split second, trying to cover it with a cough. _Fuck, she's in deep._ "Sorry, um, Annie. My name is Annie. Well, I am still trying to figure that out. I originally made it to Asia for business, but this is definitely a vacation. I really like it. The food here is delicious. The sights are beautiful. I just need to figure out how I can stay long term, I guess. At least I think I want to stay long term. Bali is almost too good to be true!"

"I pass compliment to friend, thank you! Do you have house or hotel close?"

"Yeah, I'm staying at a hostel just down the street. Do you live close to here?"

"I live in complex two streets away. Please eat with me, dinner tonight, Annie? My daughter is learn English in school. She five, but love speak English. If you here for many week, you live in extra room my apartment, pay with teach English my daughter."

"Oh, I—I didn't think about that long term. I would have to think about it, honestly. I would love to come for dinner tonight, though. Your daughter is five, you said? I have two nieces back in the States, Katia and Chloe. They're 11 and 9."

Krakatoa lets out a gentle laugh. "Yes, dinner then. Finish the meal and I show you to apartment?"

"That sounds good. Can I bring anything tonight?"

"Bring you!" She and Annie spoke for nearly another hour before Annie excused herself to the restroom. She pulled out a flash drive and slipped it in to the USB port on the laptop Annie had slipped into her bag. Five seconds and a flash later, she pulled it out and pocketed it.

Krakatoa led Annie to the complex and showed her the code. Annie declined coming up to the apartment just yet, claiming she needed to go home and freshen up before dinner. She thanked Annie profusely before entering the complex.


	2. Chapter 2

She was greeted with Auggie's snores echoing off the walls of the spacious apartment, his duffle bag tossed carelessly near the kitchen table, which housed his cane and messenger bag. She found Auggie draped across the living room couch, shoes on, clothes rumpled, dead to the world. She was surprised he hadn't woken at the sound of the apartment door slamming close, but she chalked it up to travel exhaustion.

"Auggie? Aug, wake up." He shot up then, arm going out in front of him. She bumped his hand with her forearm and sat on the coffee table in front of him. She laced her fingers through his and gave a gentle squeeze.

"Sapphira?" Auggie scrubbed his free hand across his face and shook his head, trying to clear the nightmares of bloody dead lovers and non-dead lovers and then again dead lovers.

"Finally, my real name. This Codename Krakatoa stuff is fun and all, nice to relive the good ole days, but it's great to hear you say my actual name. Fuck, you look like shit."

"You look beautiful."

"Ugh, stop it. You're disgusting. Get in the shower, soldier. I'll make you something to eat. I see you didn't raid the kitchen. Did you sleep on the plane at all?"

"Not much, no. Fira, did you make contact wi—"

"Yes. I'm not completely incompetent."

He feels up her covered arm to her shoulder and makes contact with the veil over her face. "Veil? That's why your voice is... Okay. Sapphira, what did you tell her?"

"I told her that my name is Sapphira Hartanto and I used to work for the Central Intelligence Agency of the United States of America and that one August Anderson of the Central Intelligence Agency has been looking for her for the past two weeks of radio silence and that she was pathetically easy to find and also she needs to just see you already so you can go home and marry her," Sapphira deadpanned. When Auggie didn't respond, she lowered her voice. "Come on. That was funny."

Auggie pushed his hair back, silent and irritated with her nonchalance. "Auggie, I invited her over for dinner with the long term invitation to teach English to my daughter. She is going to be here soon. I hope you're fucking ready for this because she's not."

"Sapphira," Auggie started but seemed to think better of it. "Fira, I don't know how to thank you."

"You can start by taking a shower. You're stinking up my clean apartment."

"How did she get to trusting you so quickly, Fir?"

"I started talking about my five year old daughter, Charlotte. She started telling me about her nieces, Chloe and Katia. It went uphill from there. Hey, my job was the easy part. Get her to my apartment. It was shockingly easy, all things considered. I think she just wanted someone to talk to. She gave her real name, Aug. She stuttered before saying it, though, like she didn't know who she really was. And that's the scariest part of this. I don't know all the details about what happened, but maybe she does need to find herself, Aug. Alone."

"She can find herself in D.C., right? I just need to see her. Figuratively speaking," he justified. _Keep up those justifications, Auggie. You aren't fooling anyone but yourself. Maybe not even yourself._ Sapphira sighed, knowing this was a losing battle with Auggie, as stubborn and determined to find his—lover? Girlfriend? Ex-girlfriend? Whatever she was to him, Auggie wasn't going to stop until he saw Annie.

"Shower. I'll make something for you now. And, operating under the assumption that she will stay here for more than 5 seconds after seeing you, I'll get started on dinner. Figure out how we're going to do this. She looked thin, but I know she's eating, according to my friends at the restaurant. Let her eat her nice, normal dinner with her first Indonesian friend. Then you can spring your desperate 'search-the-world-for-her' bullshit. Now, go."

Auggie smiled and pulled Sapphira into a hug, his arms tight around her lithe body. His bicep muscles trembled slightly, causing Sapphira to glance up at his face. "Thank you, Fira," he murmured into her hair before kissing her head. "I'll shower and take off for an hour. Explore the neighborhood. You should be finished eating by the time I get back."

Sapphira nodded, feeling _off_ about the whole thing. If Annie was running, what makes Auggie think she wants to be found? This was Auggie's call, she knew that. That didn't mean she had to agree with it. There had to be an explanation as to why Annie wouldn't want to be found.

_Maybe Auggie will find something on that flash drive of Annie's laptop. Let's hope he does that while Annie is over. Maybe that will level the playing field a bit more. As level as the playing field can be, anyway._

The knock on the door came way too quickly after Auggie strolled out with his messenger bag and cane. Sapphira smoothed out her dress and forced a smile. She thought of putting the niqab back on, but it was far from customary to be wearing one in the home. Annie would know that. Annie would also know that she is not full Indonesian at first glance, but at least she could explain that away. _Show time _was Sapphira's last thought before opening the door and getting a face full of gun.


	3. Chapter 3

_Show time _was Sapphira's last thought before opening the door and getting a face full of gun.

Sapphira lifted her hands and took a step back from the door, and the barrel of the gun that Annie was holding. "Who are you?" Annie demanded and shut the door quietly behind her to keep the neighbors from being alerted of the danger just meters from their front doors.

"Well, I thought this dinner would go better," Sapphira muttered without her faked Indonesian accent.

"_Who are you?_" This time more forcefully. "Who do you work for?"

"My name is Sapphira Hartanto. I'm an international tax attorney. Self-employed."

"What is your mission?"

"Getting in contact with you, which worked out so swimmingly. How'd you figure this shit out?"

"Do you work for Henry Wilcox?"

"He'd be a terrible boss, since he's dead and all." Annie flipped off the safety of the gun at the biting sarcasm from her companion.

"_Do you work for Henry Wilcox?_" Annie demanded more viciously.

"No. I'm a patriot, Annie."

"Your spycraft is pretty shitty. I figured Henry Wilcox would have taught you better. The flash drive you put in my laptop? I get a notification every time someone so much as looks at my laptop."

"Well, I don't work for Henry Wilcox, never have, and the only thing Henry Wilcox ever taught me was to never cross you and threaten your friends. Good deed eliminating him in that alley, though. I'm sure there's a special place in heaven for you," Sapphira complimented sardonically. "Ugh, I told Auggie we should have done wireless."

Annie froze at the mention of her former handler's name. "Who?" she questioned quietly. _Auggie gets to her more than killing Wilcox does. Good to know._

"August Anderson. Head of Technical Operations at the Central Intelligence Agency of the United States of America. Former Army Special Forces unit, Captain of the 82nd Airborne Division, before he was blinded by an IED on a mission in Tikrit, Iraq. Mingus aficionado. Wearer of all things gray and sweater-vested, that dork. Four older brothers. From Glencoe, Illinois. Eagle Scout."

"Who is giving you information?"

"No one needs to give me this information, Annie." Sapphira looks her in the eyes with resolve. "I was his –" Three swift knocks, pause, one swift knock followed by a resounding louder knock. "Partner. Answer that, Annie."

"How'd you call for backup?" Annie is nearly frantic, pacing and glaring at the door as if it held all of her secrets she couldn't afford escaping. Despite the panic written on her face, the barrel of her gun pointed unwaveringly at Sapphira. "You couldn't have called for backup. Who is at the door?" Annie hisses.

"You're right. I couldn't have called for backup. My hands have been up since you walked in waving that Beretta around. Want to take a guess who's at the door? Early too. He said he wouldn't be here for another 45 minutes. Never could miss out on the action. He's still the same way too, mm? Sneaking into the field with you?" Another knock, same pattern. "You use Morse Code to communicate with him during meetings, don't you? Joan gives some boring threat assessment on a mission you didn't land, why not Morse Code tap some sexy phrases to your lover." Annie's scowl deepened at the suggestion of Sapphira's statement. _It's almost fun to rile this girl up._ Annie shook her head as if she didn't agree with Sapphira.

"You know he's tapping out 'S A'. Those are the first letters of our first names. Original, right? What kind of protocol do you have set up with Auggie? You can test it out, because that _is_ him on the other side of the door." Sapphira was carefully calm about the whole situation. It's not the first time she's had a gun waved in her face, and not even the most dangerous time.

Annie's brow scrunches up. "How did you hear about me?"

"You, Anne Catherine Walker, are something of a legend. At least to Auggie."

"Pembersihan layanan," the deep voice calls from the hallway with an impatient knock.

"Annie, that means cleaning service. You can guess that's not my maid. Use whatever protocol you have set up with Auggie. Open the fucking door so he can explain what's happening."

"What kind of protocol do _you_ have with him?" Annie shot back with a glare.

"Okay. Fair enough. My protocol is to say 'Satu menit', one minute, and he will knock back with Morse Code for 'A S.' Now let me do that before he picks the damn lock."

"No. No. Get on your stomach. Hands on your head. Stay that way," Annie ordered with a wave of her gun.

Sapphira let out a groan, but did what Annie told her. "It's not like Auggie to be colluding with a terrorist with a conveniently established protocol." Annie ignored the complaint, but moved toward the door when Sapphira was on the floor.

"Move and I shoot you." _Typical. I'll get the gun out of your hand in a moment anyway, Annie._

Annie's hand reached for the handle but thought better of it. "How did you get here?" she called out to the door.

On the other side of the door, Auggie recognized her voice and inhaled deeply. "American taxi service, Helvetica," Auggie stated as clearly as he could with the emotions coating his voice. Annie pulled the door open, giving Sapphira just enough time to lunge for the gun in Annie's right hand and twist her arm until the black metal clattered across the stone floor toward the kitchen. Annie tried to throw her head back, but Sapphira dodged the move easily and pulled Annie's arms more securely behind her.

"Welcome home, honey. How was your day?" Sapphira singsonged toward Auggie. Annie finally stopped struggling in the amazement that Auggie stood in front of her. She gasped and strained against Sapphira's grip once more. "Annie, stop struggling. Auggie, close the door before the neighbors walk by."

With the door shut, Sapphira released Annie, who stood dumbstruck staring at Auggie, whose face held a hint of a grin. Sapphira strode to the kitchen for the bottle of Patron she knew was hidden in one of the cabinets. She lifted the gun from the floor and tucked it into her bra.

The slap across Auggie's face resounded through the entire apartment. _So, no happy reunion. Looks like I'm going to need this more than them_, she thought as she poured a generous shot or three into a wine glass and slammed it back with a wince at the burn down her throat. "No need for violence, Annie," Sapphira admonished without turning around, not that either of them were listening. She poured another two shots of Patron before adding some strawberry margarita juice mix from the fridge into her wine glass.

"You shouldn't have come looking for me, Auggie," Annie stated almost dejectedly.

"You shouldn't have ditched your ride back to the States, Annie," Auggie countered and reached for Annie, who practically jumped back. "Annie, please. I never had a choice. Not when it comes to you."

"You always have a choice!" Annie argued, throwing her hands into her hair and tugging.

"You never gave me a choice, Annie! You shot out of my life without giving me a choice or a chance to keep you!" Auggie's shout was loud enough to make the walls seem to shake, and Annie physically recoiled.

"Who even _is_ she?" Annie gestures wildly behind her toward the kitchen at Sapphira.

"I already told you who I am. God, it's like you never listen to me anymore. How is our relationship going to work out without communication, dear?" Sapphira snarked and prowled to the couch, kicking her feet over the arm and swirling her drink in the wine glass.

"Annie, may I introduce my former CIA partner, Sapphira Hartanto."


	4. Chapter 4

_"You had _no right _to send your old partner after me like a bloodhound! How the fuck did she even find me? I got out of Taiwan _clean_. I did not leave a trace to be found!"_

_"Yeah, you're totally right. How could you have possibly raised suspicions? An American woman wandering the Taiwanese docks alone—fuck, do you even have bags? Did you show your passport? Your _fake _passport, Jessica Matthews? What did you have to do to get on the boat here? _Who_ did you have to_ _do_, _Annie? I know how much money you have on you, and bribery is out of the question!"_

_"It is none of your business how I got here, and don't you dare pretend like fucking to get what you want has _ever _been a problem for you, Auggie. Exhibit A: Helen. Did you get some good intel out of her or did she just scream your name all night?" Auggie's jaw flexed and he bit back a growl at that. "What, your dead undead wife wasn't as good a lay as you remembered? I didn't have to _do _anyone to get here. Guess that makes me a better spy than you, huh?"_

They'd been raging for an entertaining thirty minutes so far, Sapphira perched on the couch with a gleam in her eyes and a drink in her hand. _This is almost too good to watch without popcorn. _Finally they were confronting their feelings with each other, but Sapphira almost worried about all of the breakable items in her apartment as Annie stalked around Auggie like a tiger, seemingly taunting him. He would reach for her and she would gracefully twist away, leaving him grasping nothing but air. The frustration was palpable; Auggie needed to feel her to know this was real. _The slap on his cheek did nothing to settle him, apparently._

"Let's take a break, shall we?" Sapphira rose from the couch and both of them startled and whipped their heads around to face her. "Clearly, you forgot that I was here. I'm not offended, don't worry. We all need to eat—" Both Annie and Auggie started to protest, and Sapphira shushed them like unruly children. "—and I have chicken and rice soup brewing on the stove. It might be overcooked by now. What do you want to drink? I have water, red and white wine, a variety of liquors, beer, orange juice?"

Annie stared dumbfounded at Sapphira's casualness, as if they were three friends gathering together for a cozy little dinner on vacation. Auggie opened his mouth but before he could offer up anything, Annie blurted out, "Do you even have a kid?"

Sapphira leered, "The way you walked in threatening me with a 9mm in the face and _now_ you're worried about a five year old getting splashed with her mother's brain matter?" Annie winced. "Sit down and let's talk this out like civil creatures."

Reluctantly, Annie moved toward the table in the kitchen area, standing behind the chair closest to the door. "You're not going to run, are you? I was serious about the offer to let you stay here, Annie. You don't even need to teach English to my imaginary daughter for rent. Auggie is staying here too. You two can share a room—" Annie looked down and shook her head slightly, "—ha, but I have a third room for you if you don't want to. Also, your hostel will conveniently get bedbugs by tomorrow morning. You can grab your things and come back here after dinner." Sapphira phrased it like it was a pleasant change in the weather, a gentle smile gracing her face.

Auggie moved toward the refrigerator, grabbing two beers and passing one in Annie's direction. "Bintang is my best guess?" Annie strategically avoided touching his fingers around the neck of the chilled bottle and murmured her thanks.

Sapphira could not imagine a more awkward, stilted, silent dinner than the train wreck happening in her kitchen as she dished out more chicken and rice soup. "You know, once I brought home a woman – mind you, Annie, I come from a nice, Midwestern, Catholic family – and claimed she was my girlfriend on the same night that my brother brought home a man and claimed he was _his_ boyfriend. It was all for shock value, of course. We traded significant others for the night, just for shits and giggles. This was with my extremely bigoted extended family; my actual family was mostly okay. Well, my mom.

"Anyway, shock value achieved. My brother and I weren't even particularly handsy with the significant others we claimed to be ours, because how weird would it be to feel up your brother's girlfriend at the dinner table? My aunts and uncles did not know how to respond, whatsoever, and only kept making snide anti-gay comments, which we of course refuted with logic. I had always thought of it as the most awkward dinner of my life, but this? This definitely tops it. So thank you both."

Believe it or not, that did not help ease the tension in the room. "Fira..." Auggie ground out at the same time that Annie began, "Sapphira?" Both stopped and glanced to each other and blushed.

"At least you can't make awkward eye contact," Sapphira added helpfully with a smirk and a nod. Annie hid a slight smile.

"You're incorrigible," Auggie mumbled and scooped up the last of his soup.

"Whatever. Annie, are you finished? Why don't we take a stroll to your hostel to pick up your things? We can grab some dessert on the way back. Auggie, dishes," Sapphira dictated.

"No. I want answers first," Annie refused and crossed her arms and scowled in Sapphira's direction.

"Okay, what's your question?"

"We can start with how did you find me?"

"Friend of a friend. Do any of these questions actually involve Auggie's input? Because frozen yogurt sounds good right about now, and I would love to get some fresh air. Come on, Auggie can vouch that I'm not here to kill you," Sapphira countered and stood up. "Cuci piring, Auggie," she added. "We'll be back soon!" With only the slightest protest from Auggie, Sapphira gripped Annie's wrist and pulled her toward the door. For some reason, Annie couldn't find it in herself to fight her new acquaintance.


	5. Chapter 5

"Do you want to try this again, Annie?" Sapphira was met unsurprisingly with silence and a scowl from Annie, but no voiced arguments. She stopped them both on the sidewalk and discreetly handed Annie the gun she had kept from when Annie entered her apartment. A peace offering. "Great! My name is Sapphira Hartanto. You ditched your ride back to D.C. and after no contact with you for two weeks, Auggie called me to try to reach out to my contacts here in Asia to determine your location. Conveniently enough, you picked a boat that was headed to Bali, Indonesia, which is where I currently reside, alone and without a kid.

"You paid in cash, completely wiping out the savings that you had when you were dark. You stole back the money before you got off the boat, along with the wallet of the captain you sweet-talked. I anonymously wired him a thousand in US dollars to cover his troubles, by the way. You paid in cash at the cheapest hostel in Bali and made the mistake of going to the same restaurant nearly every single day at the same time each day. Do they even teach you anything at the Farm anymore? My friend really does own that restaurant, though. And the hostel you chose? Not many Americans head that way, especially ones that are not broke college students, and especially not this time of year, but you wouldn't know that. I sent out some requests to local hospitality locations that could fit what I imagined your budget to be. That's how I found you two days ago.

"I called Auggie and he hopped on the next flight over. I rented the apartment near your hostel for the next few months and was planning to stake you out, but Auggie insisted I make contact sooner. So I made up a story about needing an English tutor and you bought it. The waitress told me you always used your laptop, so I made myself what I thought was a secure flash drive to harvest the intel on your laptop to get a better idea of what you're doing here. You're going to have to show me which program you used to detect devices, because I thought that my flash drive was hidden. Auggie was supposed to analyze it while the two of us had a nice evening in, then stop by around the time we finished eating dinner.

"Your gun in my face ruined the plan of the nice evening in, and Auggie was too eager to see you again, so to speak, and arrived earlier than I expected. I'm almost glad he did. I would have had to knock you out and tie you down, and that would be pleasant for no one. Any other questions?" Sapphira started walking again, assuming Annie would keep up.

"Very informative monologue," Annie called from a few steps behind. "One more question, though." Annie caught up and grabbed Sapphira's elbow. "Are you still with the Agency?"

Sapphira smiled something bitter and shook her head. "Been a long while since I stepped foot in Langley. There was a rumor that I had joined up with Badan Intelijen Negara, but that's never been true. I really am an international attorney. Tax, visas, human rights. Some defense contracting, when it comes to strategy, but those are freelance services and are few and far between."

"So you and Auggie were partnered before...?"

"Before he was blinded? Yeah. I quit a while before he was sent to Iraq."

"Why'd you leave the Agency?"

"Now, Annie, that is a story for another day. I'm going to go up with you." Sapphira paused in front of the hostel. "Auggie really does want to talk. Civilly, too. He missed you." With that, Sapphira took a step inside and waited for Annie to get the key to let them through the second doors.

"You must be really good friends. You know, to hunt down his..." Annie stalled. She didn't even know what she was to Auggie anymore. "His operative."

"Please, Annie, you aren't even fooling yourself. He didn't send out a discreet search party for his operative. Plus, you went dark. Well, you died, so you are no longer an operative at all. Or alive, for that matter."

"Why did he send out a discreet search party then? If not for his operative, which I was." Annie turned the key and glanced back at Sapphira, feeling a bit more relaxed but still a bit defensive around the older woman.

"He loves you. Plain and simple."

"And why would you do it?" Sapphira noticed that Annie carefully navigated around the affirmation that Auggie still loved her.

Sapphira shrugged. "I was in the neighborhood."

Annie flashed back to a flurry of smoke and gunfire and screams in an inescapable Russian prison and an Israeli man who held a part of her heart. She shook her head to clear her thoughts and walked up to her single room on the second floor of the hostel. Annie grabbed her backpack and duffle bag from the safe in the room, removing the gun holstered under her black leather jacket and tucked it in to the front pocket of her bag. She nodded at Sapphira to head out and paused to inquire, "Are you really going to release bedbugs into this place?"

"No. Never planned on it. As long as you don't run, I won't have to use extreme measures."

"This is the second time you referred to me running, Sapphira. You aren't getting fond of my company, are you?" Annie joked with a sardonic twist of her lips.

"I gave you answers, Annie. Time for you to do the same." Sapphira retorted more seriously. "What are you running from, Annie?"

"Avoiding going home, I guess. Don't want to deal with the fallout of everything," Annie lied easily. It was plausible that Langley would be in full upheaval mode, and Annie was at dead center of it. That might have been a tiny part of the truth.

"No, there's not guessing with this. And if anything, they'd give you a free trip to Blue Bonnet then a grand ole pay raise, your choice of missions, a medal. What are you running from? Is MSS still after you? I don't know you, Annie, but I know the signs of a good operative. Believe it or not, I had my scores back in the day. This isn't just some run-of-the-mill, post-operation vacation. You are running and _hiding_ because you think someone is chasing you. Why else would you agree to come to a stranger's house?"

"You're hardly a stranger now."

"I was a stranger when you accepted my invitation. I'm still a stranger, but I'm a stranger who knows Auggie, who you associate with safety. You assume that if you are far enough away from Auggie you can protect him, but he's here now and you can't risk it anymore. So the next best thing is the stay on him."

Annie stood stock still outside the hostel, shocked at the insightful profiling that Sapphira just made about her. "Honestly, I don't know who is chasing me. One of Henry's men, I assumed. I thought saw him in the Lexington headquarters, Henry's consulting operations in HK, but I'm still not entirely sure. I saw him again in the dock in Hong Kong. It was too risky to chalk it up to coincidence. I slipped away in Taiwan to come here. I didn't see the man again."

"There we go. Now we're getting somewhere. Why didn't you tell Auggie this?"

Annie let out a hysterical snort of laughter. "When? When? I couldn't go back. I couldn't make contact without potentially compromising my location! I couldn't do anything! Not when someone is chasing me."

"So you were going to stay dead forever? What if this guy tried to get Auggie before you could warn him that something was wrong?"

"Why are you judging my choices?" Annie increased her pace as if trying to get away from Sapphira. Which was silly, because they were heading back to Sapphira's apartment.

"I'm not judging. I'm challenging. Trust me, Annie, I have no room to judge you. But I do have room to challenge your operational decisions, especially the ones that could hurt my friend. You've got to tell Auggie."

"There are _so_ many things I need to tell Auggie," Annie sighed.

"Start with the truth. Start with the crisp, clean operational details. When you're ready, go on with your feelings," Sapphira advised. They walked in comfortable silence for the remainder of the distance to her apartment.

"I don't think I'll ever be ready," Annie quietly announced when the two women were in the elevator.

"Maybe not. And it's your decision to make. Keep yourself alive first, Annie. Keep yourself sane. If there's anything left inside you, then worry about everyone else." Sapphira pushed open the apartment door and glanced behind her shoulder to Annie. "That's how you make it through."


	6. Chapter 6

Auggie sat on the couch to the left of the door, head in his hands, elbows on his knees, wearing the same well-worn dark jeans and gray polo as when they left. He turned his head reflexively toward the door opening, eyes red-rimmed with what were most definitely not tears.

"Hey," Auggie croaked out before clearing his throat. "Did you bring me back anything?" He asked with an attempt at a grin. Sapphira looked at Annie and realized they didn't bother getting dessert.

"No, we decided not to grab anything." Sapphira watched Annie stared intently at her black boots scuffing at the stone tiled floor. She clearly wasn't ready to break the ice with Auggie. "Annie, let me show you your room and let you get settled. If you want a bubble bath, we can find some candles and some Beyoncé songs for optimal relaxation." Sapphira led Annie down the hall, motioning to the left at a closed bedroom door, "Auggie's. Mine is straight. This is yours. Bathroom is attached. Towels in the cabinet and shampoo and stuff are set up in the shower stall already. I have salt in the kitchen and liquid body wash for bubbles, should take me a few minutes." Annie was stunned into silence just staring at the doorway of the room. "Get settled."

"Thanks," she breathed as Sapphira slipped past her. The room held a queen-sized bed, a solid dark gray headboard emphasizing the dark gray cherry blossoms embroidered on the turquoise duvet cover and matching bed skirt. The bathroom door was to her right, close to the bed. A dark gray desk was pressed against the left wall next to the closet and dark gray armoire. Playing off the purple throw pillows on the bed, the royal purple column lamp stood tall in the corner next to the sliding doors that led to a balcony overlooking the city. The room smelled like papayas and coconuts thanks to the plug-in freshener near the desk. It was the second most luxurious room she had stepped foot in since she went dark.

Finally shaking her head, she walked in, closing the door behind her and turning on the overhead light before turning it off and deciding the lamp light was enough. She placed her duffle bag on top of the armoire and her backpack with her laptop on the desk. Turning around, she opened the balcony door and smiled at the sight below her. Street vendors were still selling foods from their carts, tourists still wandering around, kids still shrieking in their games. The air was warm and humid and the sky a dark purple from the last remaining rays of the sun. She thought there was some kind of poetic beauty about the sun setting and the sky holding on to the last memories of the sun before delving into complete darkness, but her brain was too fried to think of what the romantic connection to her life was.

Annie shut and locked the glass door and slid the purple curtain across the door and headed to the bathroom. Annie smiled when she saw the Jacuzzi-style bathtub, complete with jets that almost made her cry with happiness. She opted for a quick shower to wash off the hostel grime first, then a bubble bath until her skin pruned.

She was pushing down her pants when the bedroom door opened. Sapphira strolled into the bathroom and held up a bottle of liquid body wash. "Closest thing to bubble bath soap without actually being bubble bath soap," and tossed the bottle to Annie.

"Let's go shopping tomorrow. You've lost weight," Sapphira noted.

"What if I've always been this thin?" Annie countered with a half-smile at the woman who had lied about her entire life story to her less than 5 hours ago and who she tentatively wanted to trust.

"You haven't." Annie was beginning to like Sapphira and her no-shit ways. Sapphira pushed past Annie into the bathroom and grabbed a remote from under the counter. She held up an old iPod and pressed a button on the remote. Sure enough, the beginning chords Beyonce's Drunk in Love made a laugh bubble out of Annie's throat. She was almost surprised that she could still laugh. "I put the iPod in a ziplock baggie and the remote is waterproof. You can bring them in the tub. Enjoy." And just like that, Sapphira was out of the room and closing the door.

_Auggie has some strange friends_, Annie thought as she rinsed her hair in the shower, noting that thankfully the shower stall was made of glass, about four feet each direction and completely stocked with citrus minty smelling shampoo, conditioner, and body wash. The citrus smell vaguely reminded Annie of a time months and months ago when her life hadn't started spiraling wildly out of control and she let her thoughts roam. _What kind of perfume can I wear now that says 'My life is in shambles'? Maybe something woodsy. Or just gunpowder and blood._

Interrupting Annie's contemplation, Sapphira again shamelessly sauntered in to the bathroom, ignoring Annie's sputtered out protests and taking note of the gun that was within reach on top of the toilet. Annie didn't attempt to cover herself, though, and Sapphira snorted a laugh at the girl's brazenness. She held up some underwear, pajama bottoms, and a tank top that didn't belong to Annie and left them on the sink counter. Annie thought she heard Sapphira call out "Washing your clothes," but she couldn't seem to make out the words over the resounding bass of Beyoncé's Yoncé. Annie rinsed off the rest of her body before grabbing the fluffy deep purple colored towel on the rack beside the shower and stomped on the plush rug leading to the bathtub. Humming along to the tunes, Annie poured a generous amount of improvised bubble bath into the steaming running water and sank under the scalding water, letting the heat burn her skin so she could feel something.

* * *

"Hey." Auggie looked up at the soft greeting and nodded in acknowledgement. Sapphira tapped the handle of a mug of tea against the back of his hand and he grasped it, feeling Sapphira's thin fingers against his. The spark wasn't there anymore. Not in the feel of her skin against his, not in the thoughts of her, not in the sound of her voice. The memories of a different time fluttered to the front of his mind. Hot, sandy, dangerous, sexy in a way he thought no other woman could be, at the time.

_"You gonna pick up the pace or am I going to have to carry you, Anderson__?" Sapphira called over her shoulder, military-grade boots kicking up the sand on the southern Bali beach._

_"Nope, just enjoying the view!" Auggie called back and heard her giggle. She paused only to slap her ass before taking off again. He caught up to her without a problem. "You should have put on something besides your bikini and military boots. Do you know how hard I am? This is every man's fantasy right here." Auggie tackled her to the sand, Sapphira shrieking in laughter, close enough to the shore that the waves lapped against his own boots. He pulled his shirt off and folded it over the sand before leaning over and pressing her head down onto the shirt. "I know how much you hate getting sand in your hair."_

_Sapphira moved her hands to the side of his face and pulled him down, wasting no time in biting his lip playfully and maneuvering her hips against his to test out his earlier words. "Bikini and military boots. Who would have thought?" The look in her eyes told of pure adoration and more than a hint of arousal, and his must have reflected the same._

_"I love you," he stated simply._

_"You love my ass," Sapphira defiantly retorted, lips and tongue now on the spot below his ear._

_Auggie pulled away. "Sapphira Hartanto, I love you, all of you, especially your ass, but mostly you. Just you. Always you."_

_Sapphira paused with a gentle smile gracing her face. "August Anderson—" Shots rang out and both of them instinctively dashed behind the rock wall 5 meters from the waves. Wordlessly, Auggie reached into his swim trunks and pulled out his despised Beretta Nano. The phone in Sapphira's left boot started to vibrate and she reached down and flipped it open. "Michael, what the fuck is happening?"_

_"Get to the pier to your left, 150 meters. Black Escalade, Thai plate number squiggly upside down Uniform, backwards Foxtrot, 6-1-1-6. We're evac-ing now. Also, tactical disadvantage by running around in a bikini, Fir," the man on the other line shouted over the sound of a closeby blast._

_"Fuck off, Michael. Get your ass over there too. We're not leaving without you. We can cover our own asses. And learn the damn Thai alphabet!" She turned to look Auggie in the eye and he nodded, motioning toward closing the phone and running at full speed. The world could have blown up around him and the only spark he would have noticed was from Sapphira's fingers brushing his in the split second before they both took off toward the pier._

"Aug, you okay?" Sapphira took a sip of her still-too-hot tea.

"Yeah, just remembering something," Auggie sighed. "How's Annie doing?"


	7. Chapter 7

"How's Annie doing," Sapphira mocked back. "Oh, she's just peachy. We're really getting to be the _best_ of friends. When we went out, we gossiped about all the cute boys we saw as we braided each other's hair. We also made friendship bracelets and skipped into the sunset." Auggie rolled his eyes at Sapphira's expected but still acidic sarcasm. "How the _fuck_ do you think she's doing?"

"Well, I sure was hoping you'd tell me since you talked to her more than I did."

"Not my fault that I can hold a five minute conversation without screaming at her."

Auggie ignored the barb. Auggie set down his tea on the table in front of him and stretched his arms behind the couch before leaning forward and looking at Sapphira intently. She almost gasped at how close his eyes were to being locked with hers. "Nice move getting her out of here; I thought for sure she was going to run if she sat staring at me any longer."

"She's been through a lot, Auggie. Back off. She doesn't need you questioning her every move. She's forgotten what life is like without the fight. She just needs to regain her balance."

"So what should I be questioning? How she wasn't planning on coming back? If it's just me she's avoiding or the rest of the world too? Why she's running? You get that intel out of her? Should I even bother asking you for the _truth_?" Auggie's jab at Sapphira's habit of keeping secrets from him made her grind her teeth.

"I have done more than enough for you. Don't interrogate me," Sapphira retorted primly. Auggie sighed and ran his hands through his hair.

"Did she tell you why she was running, Fira?"

"Why does anyone run?" Sapphira prompted.

"Someone is chasing her," Auggie fell into the game easily. It was a strategy they'd devised when they were partnered so they weren't completely lying to each other all the time. If one of them didn't want to betray any trust by telling the entire truth all at once (or simply couldn't, which in their line of work was the norm), they would play 20 questions. Though, the answers usually came out much sooner than 20. He always could read what she didn't say. "He from Henry's organization?"

"Sure isn't from the local bakery." _Yes._

"She knew him?"

"How am I supposed to know who she knew? She must have met a lot of people when she was dark. Doesn't mean I know all of them." _Met him after she went dark._

"Did she know him well?"

"Probably weren't swapping spit behind the bleachers at the nearest high school." _No._"Udah. Enggak tahu lagi."

"Find out what you can." Auggie knew that was the end of that. He knew his real line of questioning should be directed at Annie, but Sapphira was right. He needed to let his foot off the accelerator with Annie or she would run.

"I'm doing what I can, Auggie. But I need to earn Annie's trust before anything else. She needs to be able to trust me, or else she'll go off on her own, vigilante-style, to personally put a bullet in the head of anyone associated with Henry Wilcox. Right now, here, she doesn't think she's in immediate danger. I can blindly follow my own leads from the 10 words she said to me about it, but until she realizes she can trust more than just herself, we are stuck at square one."

They both allowed the scenarios to roll through their minds of how this whole game was going to play out.

"It's a shit show back home, you know. Langley can't be trusted anymore. Moles are popping up at every turn. A few even caught me by surprise. But she can trust me. It can't be that hard to get Annie to trust me again, Fira. Not professionally anyway. We were always able to work together, better than most handlers and operatives, since day one. She'll tell me soon enough."

"Okay." Sapphira knew professional trust wasn't what was plaguing his mind. "And? Personally? What are your thoughts there?"

"I want her to... love me the way that I love her. Eventually. But first I just want her to trust me."

"Shouldn't have fucked Helen then." Sapphira recalled Auggie's forced calm voice over the phone, reciting every encounter Auggie had had with Annie since she went dark. The surprise that Helen faked her death knocked the wind out of her.

"Sapphira, that was a mistake. I know that. You know that. But, damn, did I love that woman."

"I remember. I was there for the fallout," Sapphira acknowledged. "You nearly got an ally operative killed in the attempt to get your answers. Filip still hates you for the knife he took to his face for his involvement with you."

_Auggie showed up unannounced on her doorstep of the two story modern-designed house she owned a bit outside Jakarta on a pleasant, breezy evening. She didn't wonder how he found the address; she did file her taxes like a good expatriate. She tilted her head back slightly to indicate he could enter. His eyes were still red, crying the entire flight no doubt. He held a black duffle bag loosely in his left hand and dropped it unceremoniously to the side of the entryway before kicking the door shut._

_"Finish debriefs?" It was an unnecessary question. He wouldn't be here if he hadn't been cleared. Auggie himself told her that he was going deep cover months ago. Sapphira heard from a friend within the agency that Auggie's deep cover wife, and rumored legal wife, was freshly dead as of a few weeks ago. The Agency didn't bother telling her family until recently, body cremated and shipped stateside after deciding the mission had either been compromised or not; Sapphira didn't care much about the mission, so she never got the full details on it__. _

_He nodded hazily as he toed off his shoes and gingerly sat on the edge of the couch. His muscles must ache something fierce._

_"How long did the Agency give you off?" Sapphira moved toward the separate kitchen area, feeling Auggie's vulnerable eyes on her back._

_"Six weeks before they'll even make contact with me." Sapphira made a noise of distaste but otherwise kept silent. She returned with a plate of sliced red dragonfruit and two water bottles. "Arthur didn't explain anything. He just told me to stay out of sight. He—he knew I __watched__ her _die _and he told me to get lost. 'For my own safety,'" Auggie mimicked nastily. There were many reasons she left the Agency, and bullshit protocol had a lot to do with it._

_Sapphira nudged the plate in Auggie's direction and set her mouth. Auggie clearly hadn't been eating and the bags under his eyes said he hadn't been sleeping either. He took a slice and held it between his fingers distractedly, letting the pink juice stain his skin before peeling the flesh from the skin of the dragonfruit._

_"I didn't have anywhere to go," Auggie reasoned. "Got evac-ed from Rome faster than when we got lifted out of Kuta Beach in '02. They're tearing apart my D.C. apartment to ascertain if I was targeted too. Eyes on my family and Helen's. The service was yesterday. Two days ago?" He sounded clinical in his brief of facts. The rumpled black suit he still wore showed he came straight from the service._

_"Two days ago," Sapphira confirmed softly. "You'll always have a place to go, Aug." Auggie's tired eyes seemed to want to question her on that, but he let it go._

_Helen Hanson. She only heard snippets of the abilities of Operative Hanson from her old friend Michael. Neither had worked with her directly, but Hanson's highly-regarded reputation for undercover seemed enough to quell the fears that Sapphira and Michael both held for their friend's safety._

_"She'll be able to watch Auggie's back," Michael had said. Too bad she couldn't watch her own._

_"I married her," Auggie blurted out after taking a sip of his water. "Really married her. Sapphira, I love—loved her." He struggled to keep it together and polished off the rest of the water bottle to keep himself busy. "Need something stronger. Got any Patron?"_

_Sapphira ignored his request. "She doesn't need to be alive for you to love her, Auggie." It was humorous, in a macabre sort, because she knows all about loving the dead._

_"I wasn't even given the details of—of anything, really." Auggie set the empty bottle down with shaking hands and looked at her with haunted eyes. She already knew his unvoiced appeal. "You still friends with Filip in Amsterdam?"_

_Sapphira unconsciously rubbed the raised lines around her left wrist. The old scars crisscrossing the expanse of her back began to throb and she felt the world start to shrink. She closed her eyes and mentally counted to ten (in every language she knew). Auggie waited patiently, eyes trained intently on the slight movement of her lips. He knew he was dredging up barely-buried nightmares by asking this of her. But he needed answers._

_"Not really," Sapphira revealed when she had collected herself, eyes still screwed shut and fingers still playing on the scars from the shackles on her wrist. "But I'll try. I'll try to put you in contact with him. He probably still checks our old protocol message board."_

_"Sapphira, I need—"_

_"I know."_

_"I love her."_

_"I know."_


	8. Chapter 8

Annie must have dozed off in the tub because a hesitant knock on the bathroom door caused her to bolt up, splashing water over the side of the tub as she instinctively grasped for the gun that wasn't within reach. She cursed aloud and was about to dash to the toilet where she laid her gun, but Auggie's timid call of "Walker?" stilled her movements.

Annie reached for the towel hanging on the bar by the tub and wrapped it around herself, telling her heartbeat to slow. "You can come in, Auggie."

"Are you dressed?" He asked stupidly, still at a loss for words around her.

"Why would it matter if I'm naked or in a full burqa?" Annie mentally cursed how callous she sounded. She really didn't want to be vicious, but it was almost as if she has forgotten how to interact with friends. _If he's still my friend. __  
_

"Just didn't want to make you uncomfortable." Auggie was still on the other side of the slightly-cracked door.

_Fuck you, Auggie, and your constant concern for my well-being. _"Let me get dressed and I'll be right out. Bed is to the left of this door," Annie distractedly informed him and slipped on the clothes Sapphira left her, noting that the detergent held the same papaya and coconut scent as the air freshener in her room. It was relieving to have a bit of consistency in her life.

Annie walked out of the steamy bathroom and took note that Auggie stood near the desk, across the room from the bed. She tried not to read in to that.

"How was your—never mind," Auggie probably realized how overtly sexual it would sound, asking how a bath was. "Feel more relaxed?" He settled.

"Yeah. Your, um, friend Sapphira really knows how to welcome guests," Annie forced out. _God, this shouldn't be so awkward._

"Uh-huh. Fira, uh, that's her nickname, but you probably figured that, um. She's great!" Auggie announced a bit too eagerly.

"Did you want something?" Annie was thankful that Auggie could not see her physically cringe at how badly this conversation was going.

"Just wanted to say good night, I guess. I'm right across the hall, if you need anything."

"Uh, thanks. Good night, too." Both of them stood in heavy silence, too many words and not enough words hanging between them.

"What does your room look like?" Auggie asked inanely, not quite wanting to leave Annie's presence and definitely not knowing how to bow out gracefully.

"Turquoise, purple, gray color scheme. It's really elegant. Like a hotel room, sort of. A fancy, five star hotel room. Um, balcony overlooking the street. I can hear the ocean if I open up the doors. Do you, uh, want to go out there?" Annie ground out the words with a horrified expression on her face. Never had a conversation between them been this strained and unnatural.

"I have one too," Auggie offered. "Not sure what it overlooks, but... Yep. I have a balcony too. My room is a black and red scheme. Not like vicious or scary or anything, I think. Sophisticated black and red. Or at least, that's what Fira said. For all I know, I could be in a hot pink and glitter Hello Kitty-themed room."

When seconds passed and Annie didn't laugh at his blind quip, Auggie tried to hide a wince. "Well, okay. I'm, uh. Good night." He moved toward the door, right hand grazing against the wall to get to the door. He paused with his hand on the door jamb and waited for her to call out to him, to scream at him, to say anything to him. He remembered when Annie came to his apartment months and months ago, after her mission with Helen. Sure, she did come to break up with him, but he knew she expected him to fight for her. He was as silent then as she is now. _I should have fought for her then. Why should I expect anything different? _They had a lot of mending to do.

He shut the door and held back tears as he entered his room, not bothering to turn on the light. Metaphoric and literal darkness was always his favorite combination for self-loathing.

* * *

Annie uncurled her body from around her pillow, deciding sleep was now entirely out of the question. It was almost 04:00 and she got maybe 30 minutes after Auggie had left her room. Well, after she tossed and turned for a long while before finally submitting to the sheer exhaustion that is her life. She threw the covers off and shivered when her bare feet brushed against the stone tile of the floor. She grabbed the gun from under her pillow and tucked it in to the waistband of her (Sapphira's) pajama pants. She had her knife strapped to her ankle in a leather case, even while she slept. She almost added another knife to her body arsenal, but opted against it. She was just going to the kitchen anyway.

Annie planned to see if there was a knife sharpener or maybe a rag to clean her gun in the kitchen, but she was stunned to see the light over the kitchen island casting a soft glow throughout the kitchen and into living room. Sapphira rested at one end of the couch wearing only a large black t shirt and black underwear, feet tucked under her, and a mug of steaming tea clasped between her hands. Another steaming mug was on the coffee table in front of her.

"Mint tea with honey. Come sit with me, Annie," Sapphira volunteered without turning around or looking up. Annie faltered but slowly moved toward the couch, wondering just how Sapphira knew that she was awake. Sapphira patted the couch cushion next to her with a raised eyebrow. Annie mirrored Sapphira's position and reached for her mug. They both sipped their tea in a comfortable hush that can only be found in the dead of night. Neither seemed keen to start a conversation or even look at each other, save the occasional side glances Annie kept stealing at the other woman.

"Thank you," Annie murmured after a while.

"You're welcome." Sapphira replied breezily.

"I know he's your friend and I'm his...whatever I am to him, and that you had some connection, so none of this can be easy. I mean, if my, um, _partner_—" Annie emphasized in the implication that she believed Sapphira and Auggie had been more than just partners —"called to ask for help finding his most recent girlfriend..." Annie rambled before Sapphira cut her off with a _Shush_. Annie held her eyes for a moment longer before staring intently at her tea.

Sapphira remembered that look; it stared back at her in the mirror for months after she had come back from captivity all those years ago. Annie's eyes looked _dead_. She was far from an eager, green operative.

"Fira," Annie tested out the nickname, "I've known you for 12 hours. I shouldn't trust you this easily."

"That's not entirely correct. You _can _trust me this easily, and arguably _should_. You just feel like you've forgotten how to. There are good people in this world, Annie. I am one of them—" Annie smiled at Sapphira's assured tone "—and Auggie is another. You have at least one really good friend back home, Annie Walker."

Annie's mind flashed with images of the many times Auggie had her back. Always. He always had her back. He always would have her back. She jumped off the couch with renewed vigor. Sapphira gathered up their empty mugs with a knowing look. "Go. He probably can't sleep either."

"It's almost oh-four hundred, though. Wait. It's almost oh-four. Why are _you_ awake?" Annie's realization hit her and she started to wonder what kind of life Sapphira had. Both now and when she was with the CIA.

"Sometimes good people are meant to come in to your life, Annie. And when they do, you do everything you can for them and they do everything they can for you. You are a good person. Go," Sapphira had already padded to the kitchen with their mugs, nodding to Annie's quiet thanks.

Sapphira's wisdom echoed in Annie's mind. _How Zen. _Annie thought to herself as she glided down the hall on fresh feet to Auggie's room. She raised her hand to knock when Auggie's door whipped open.


	9. Chapter 9

"Auggie!" Annie exclaimed in surprise, relaxing the hand that unconsciously reached for the gun at her hip. _Who else would be opening his door, Annie? Fucking relax._

"Annie?" Auggie's voice was sharp and clear, but still rough. He definitely hadn't slept. Sapphira brushed behind Annie in the hallway to get to her own room, gently squeezing her shoulder in encouragement before closing her bedroom door. Auggie's head tilted at the sound and he knitted his brow in confusion at Annie.

"Walk with me?" Annie touched the back of his hand and he gripped her elbow loosely and moved in step with her. Well, at least they could still do something right. "I couldn't sleep," Annie admitted.

"Me neither," Auggie agreed as they reached the kitchen. "Barstools or couch?"

"I'm afraid I'll pass out on you if I'm on the couch. It's really comfortable." Auggie smiled for Annie's benefit as he took a seat on the barstool at the kitchen island and waited for her to continue. Annie grabbed two water bottles from the refrigerator behind them and sat down next to him. She breathed for a moment, taking in the worry lines on his face that she swore weren't there the last time she saw him. "Auggie—"

"Annie—" They both laughed nervously at how forced their encounters have been so far. "Go ahead, Walker."

"Uh, water at your two." She watched him move effortlessly until the back of his hand tapped the water bottle. Three years later and she was still in awe with him. "Auggie, we need to talk."

"Finally, something we agree on."

"Don't say anything; just listen this time around, okay? I need to get this out all in one go otherwise I won't say it at all. Okay?"

"Okay," Auggie agreed, mentally adding _Anything for you_.

"Shit, I don't even know where to start," Annie breathed and thought about Sapphira's advice on the way back from the hostel. _Crisp, clean op__erational details first_. "Okay. I guess you just want to know everything. Aug, I was going to come back to D.C., I really was. I got off the phone with you, and Joan and Arthur, and all I wanted to do was come home. I didn't know where exactly 'home' was, because I'm still officially dead, I think.

"When the boat from Hong Kong docked in Taiwan, I was waiting on the pier for the next boat to arrive, the one that would take me to the Sasebo Naval Base in Japan, where I would fly cargo on a plane to one of the lesser-used runways in LAX, stay one night in L.A. and fly to D.C. in the morning– See, I really did pay attention." Auggie afforded her a light chuckle and took a sip of his water. Annie tried not to stare.

"But as I was waiting for my next boat, I noticed a man who looked like someone I saw in Lexington pretending not to be watching me. I started walking up the pier, away from the boats and acted lost, even going behind some of the shacks on the dock. He followed. I didn't know how I was going to get away from him, there wasn't really anywhere to go if I wanted to stay in the bay area, but I turned down one of the cargo container holding areas and started sprinting to the other side of the docks. I didn't seem him follow me after that, maybe he spent too much time checking around the cargo.

"I saw one of the captains getting ready to take his transport boat out to sea. I knocked my cheek and nose against one of the metal containers, hard, and started crying. I ran up to him and begged him to take me out of Taiwan. He spoke enough English to figure out that I was running from what I said was an abusive husband. I mean, it wasn't that hard to figure out. My face was torn up and my nose was bloody. I gave him all two hundred U.S. cash that I had in my wallet, desperate and in tears and looking around for the Lexington man that was following me, but the captain assumed I was checking for my husband.

"The man told me 'Bali' and ushered me into the quarters of the boat. And I know what you're thinking: this is a shitty plan and that man could have been a human trafficker or even one of Henry's, but I was out of ideas. The captain gave me a water bottle and left me to my own devices for the entire trip. I passed out from exhaustion at some point and I didn't check the time when I got on the boat. I guess the trip took five, maybe six hours to get to Bali.

"I picked the captain's wallet before I got off the boat while I was hugging him in thanks. Terrible, right? Fira said she wired him a thousand in U.S. dollars after. I walked for awhile but then hitched a ride in the bed of a pick-up truck to what thankfully turned out to be a tourist area. I went into a grocery store to get food and water and to wash off my bloody mess of a face. I made up some story about falling out of a truck and asked for directions to a cheap hostel. I didn't even have to hunt for anyone who spoke English; it seemed like everyone did.

"I found the hostel around the corner, paid in cash for three weeks, the longest they would take in advance, locked the door, and passed the fuck out. I woke up to drink every once in a while and ate less frequently than that. Two days passed before I got out of bed. I showered and decided to do some exploring, make sure nothing was out of the ordinary. Then I went back and slept. I slept most of the time, really.

"And I went to this restaurant, where Fira found me. I know, it goes against all of my training, and it's painful to know that if Sapphira can find me, so can anyone else. But there was something about the restaurant, Auggie. It reminded me of Allen's, except with less alcohol and no best friend." Auggie's eyes crinkled when he smiled for a second before his blank, passive face returned. Annie gulped in air, feeling like her lungs were finally opening again. "They had wifi and I needed to do some digging. I wasn't able to come up with much. Or anything, really, on this guy that I thought I saw one time while I was getting shot at with a sociopath."

Auggie opened his mouth, but then thought better. He promised that he would let her finish speaking before he said anything. He nodded instead. Annie cleared her throat.

"I wasn't sure how I was going to find out that information. I guess at some point I would have had to call you," Annie murmured with a defeated sigh. Now that she had the words out, it sounded like a weak defense to why she didn't call him. She had been chased before. She automatically sought Auggie for help. But she didn't this time. What she didn't mention was that she felt there was no one she could trust, maybe not even Auggie. She had been on her own for so long, she forgot how to lean on another person. She tried to recall the time when trust came easily. She couldn't.

"There. Those are the crisp, clean operational details that have led me from Taiwan to when Sapphira found me."

True to his word, Auggie did not say a thing. His synapses were firing ideas and retorts to everything Annie told him, but he did not utter a syllable until Annie concluded. He tried to categorize his thoughts into mission-oriented objectives. They needed to find out who was chasing Annie. They needed to make sure whoever was chasing her didn't find the boat captain who smuggled her here. They needed to concentrate on making sure Henry didn't posthumously fuck shit up any more than he already did. He needed to focus on keeping them safe. He couldn't afford to address his emotions right now.

"I'm done. You can say something now," Annie whispered after a few electrified seconds.

"I'm so fucking angry at you," Auggie concluded, emphasizing each word grimly. Or he could start by addressing his emotions before the mission.


	10. Chapter 10

"I'm so fucking angry at you," Auggie concluded, emphasizing each word grimly. Or he could start by addressing his emotions before the mission.

His face was unsettlingly blank, but the way his fists clenched until his knuckles were white belied his relaxed features. "And I don't know if that anger will go away any time soon. I'm so furious at you, at everything that happened, everything you chose to do these past months."

"You have every right to be," Annie acknowledged gracefully, hiding the hint of bubbling anger that threatened. Auggie stood up and started pacing from the kitchen island to the couch and back. Precise, swift turns on the balls of his feet at each end.

"You said 'Fuck it!' to everything we had going for us, before you went dark without consulting me _and_ after you shot Henry. And after everything I did for you, everything I sacrificed, you didn't have the common courtesy to shoot me a warning text that you weren't coming home!"

"Everything we had going for us? Auggie, I did this for us!" Annie exclaimed, shocked that Auggie couldn't see that everything she did, every sin she committed, was for them.

"Really, Annie? I never asked for this! I never asked for _any_ of this! We could have found another way!"

"No, we couldn't have. Not the one with this outcome!"

"What outcome? You faking your death? Do you know what it felt like when I told Danielle? Do you want to know what her screams sound like, the kind that didn't stop for hours after I told her that her little sister was dead? Do you know how fucking exhausting it was, playing the grieving boyfriend under the suspicious watch of an agency full of trained spies? You shooting Henry in a back alley? I heard you on the phone. You sounded dead. You not coming home? Did you even want to come back? You _refusing _to tell me the truth about why you weren't coming home? You know I could have done something if you'd told me someone was after you! Which outcome are you talking about?" Annie scoffed throughout Auggie's interrogation, suddenly letting that anger emerge.

"As if I didn't have my own problems to worry about! I couldn't afford the luxury of thinking about anything but the mission and keeping myself alive! And if you could _ever_ forgive me," Annie started sarcastically, "the truth is _complicate—"_ Annie stopped short, her stomach dropping suddenly. _The truth is complicated. Forgive me._ Ben's note. A whimper escaped her lips.

"Ha," Auggie snorted bitterly. "You finally figured it out, didn't you? You have been running around for the past 8 months thinking your actions did not affect anyone. You have been living on the thrill of catching Henry, of completing your mission, going around thinking that you are alone in this world. Your actions are not your own. Your _life_ is not your own. You have people, Annie, and you let us go for your own mission."

Annie tried to suck in a breath but nothing could help the blackness that shrouded her vision. "It wasn't just _my_ mission. None of this—"

"It was your self-appointed mission, Walker. A file and go-ahead from Joan wouldn't have mattered. No one's approval mattered and you still won't accept that this whole shit show came from you making the split-second decision to hunt down Henry Wilcox on your own."

"No, no. You don't get to put the blame on me. I didn't choose this. This is Henry's fault!"

"Yeah. This started with Henry. But the path _you_ chose..." Auggie scrubbed his face and swallowed hard. Annie already knew the next words were going to hurt. "It was always Mercer's fault, when he left. It was always his fault, his choice, not something he was _required_ to do. Not until you were in his shoes, then it was the mission's fault, not yours. It was required from you. You think you were never given a choice," Auggie continued, far more calmly, which was somehow even worse. "You are always given a choice. Mercer was given a choice. You chose to leave, Walker."

"It's not the same."

"It's funny, you know," Auggie said, both of them knowing that whatever he'd say couldn't be farther from funny. "It's all about him choosing the Agency, his mission, over you. And you can't see that you're doing the _exact _same thing."

"I didn't know Ben was CIA. I didn't know he was going to leave. You knew what I was going to do," Annie tried to defend weakly.

"Doesn't mean I wanted it to happen. Doesn't mean there wasn't a fallout." Auggie blinked back tears. "Doesn't mean it didn't– _doesn't_ hurt."

Oh, Annie knew all about that hurt. She closed her eyes and saw the parallels now, clearly and distinctly, and tried not to heave. Ben Mercer had his reasons for leaving her in Sri Lanka, not that she knew them at the time. She tried to justify that it wasn't the same: Ben lied about his work and left her with nothing but a note; Auggie knew what she was getting into and even supported her. Except he didn't, he didn't want her going anywhere. He provided tactical support, but he didn't agree with her decision. She chose her mission over her love. She turned in to Ben Mercer. She was Auggie's Ben. That was almost too much to handle.

"Maybe we should go to bed. Talk about this in the morning," Annie suggested softly, feeling a darkness overtake her body. She was so tired. Annie uncapped her water and forced herself to swallow the cold liquid. She needed time. She needed space to think about everything. She refused to cry, but, _damn_, did she want to. _How the hell am I supposed to move on from this? I became everything that ever broke me. How is Auggie not more broken? _

"Why _not_ put this discussion off? Actually, maybe I'll just head home and let you work this shit out yourself. Tell Joan and Calder I couldn't find you. You live your happy little life under whatever alias you choose. I'll try to move on. Hey, maybe I can join a spy organization to try to make up for getting burned by my ex-lover! It turned out _so_ well for you," Auggie spat out, vicious sarcasm laced through his words.

His eyes flashed with regret as soon as the words left his mouth. Anger wouldn't help them. But he wanted to hate her. He wanted to hurt her, make her feel like he had for all the time she was dark. He kept pacing and waited for her to say something. He cleared his throat and muttered, "Sorry."

She seemed almost resigned in her silence, but then she murmured, "When I first started, Henry Wilcox said something to me. He said we were all in the mud."

"Yeah, I remember." He remembered that conversation. He remembered asking her if it bothered her. He remembered Annie confessing that she was scared of going too far down a path she wouldn't be able to recover from. He wondered if she was too far gone now.

"And I wanted to know how dirty I was going to get. I never thought it would be _this_ dirty. I never wanted it to be this dirty. Auggie, I never wanted to hurt you. That was never my intent."

They sat in silence for a few minutes. The words were all out there. Now it was just a matter of how to move on from here. If they could move on. If they could ever really forgive each other.

"Joan and Calder have been on my ass about where you went off to and why you didn't contact me. We have different methods of protocol, Walker. A lot of them. And I have been racking my brain for an answer to why you didn't use _any_ of them," Auggie interrupted her thoughts quietly and took his seat at the island again. It seemed that the hateful part of their talk was over. Out loud, anyway. Annie still felt Auggie's animosity toward her and her actions in the air.

"I didn't want to get in contact with you because I thought it would compromise my location. If Henry's Lexington guy even glimpsed which boat I was on, where I was headed... I needed to protect you. I still do."

"I was an operative just the same as you! I don't need protecting!" Auggie bellowed unexpectedly.

"What do you need, then, Auggie?" Annie inquired gingerly, taken aback at his outburst.

Auggie put his head in his hands and emitted what sounded suspiciously like a sob. "You. I need you, Annie," Auggie whispered to his hands. But then he looked up, his eyes nearly meeting Annie's perfectly. "I never need anyone, but I need you."

Annie gasped at his confession. Her fingers twitched toward Auggie, but he looked so fragile that she thought if she touched him he would break. Just like everything else she touched. _God, I am death_.

"I need you, Annie. But I also need to figure out _how_ I need you. If I need you as a friend or something more. But I know I need you in my life, Annie, and I'm willing to fight _for_ you and _beside_ you."

Annie's mind did not make the instruction that her body followed when she lunged forward into Auggie's solid body. "Okay. Okay. Okay," Annie repeated like a plea into Auggie's soft cotton shirt. She felt his body shake as he wrapped his arms around her and realized she was shivering too. No, she was sobbing. Loud, snotty, gasps for breath, trying to relieve the weight that threatened her chest and locked up her throat. And so was Auggie.


	11. Chapter 11

They held each other for an eternity or a millisecond, letting out their fears and anger through hysteric weeping that echoed throughout the entire apartment. Eventually, they each felt the river of tears slowed down to streams, then stray tears, then just occasional shivers against each other.

"Sorry, I think I got snot in your hair," Auggie broke the silence with a thick voice in an attempted joke.

"You're gonna need to change your shirt, unless you want to sleep in something soaked like you took a dive through the ocean," Annie played along easily. More silence.

"That was well-needed."

"Agreed."

Both of them spoke so softly, as if not wanting to ruin the moment they just shared.

"Maybe it really is time we get to bed," Auggie murmured, not quite wanting to let go of Annie.

"Yeah," Annie sniffled and looked at the clock. "It's 05:03. Guess we should try to sleep before the sun comes up."

"Yeah. Try to get a few hours of shut-eye. I'll be here when you wake up." Neither of them moved. Auggie took a deep breath, inhaling the citrus-mint of the shampoo that Annie used earlier. It was strange, smelling Fira's shampoo on Annie. "I'm still angry, Annie."

"I know."

"But I still want to be with you. In whatever context works for us both."

"I know."

"It really is time to sleep."

"I know." And with that, Annie pulled back, instantly missing the physical and figurative warmth that was Auggie Anderson. "This was progress."

"I know," Auggie replied saucily. Then he reached up to Annie's cheeks and thumbed the tears away. "Hey—" He started, then changed his mind. "Good night, Annie." Auggie leaned forward to press a kiss to her heated forehead, squeezed her hand, then crept down the hall to his room.

Annie used a napkin to wipe the remaining tears from her face then blow her nose. She closed her eyes and rubbed her temples before making her way down the hall too. She glanced at Auggie's closed door and contemplated entering his room, but that wouldn't do anyone any good. They needed space. They both needed to think things through. Separately, for now.

* * *

Annie bolted awake at the sound of a dog barking loudly outside her balcony, gun already in hand and thumb playing at the safety. _Dog. Just a dog. _She glanced over at the clock and was shocked to see it was 08:13. She slept for more than 3 hours without waking up in a frantic, post-nightmarish state. That was a new record. She heard a vacuum running in the front of the apartment and figured it was time to get up. She grabbed her gun and walked over to her now empty black duffle bag. _Sapphira did wash my clothes. Or stole them._

The smell of bacon and eggs pleasantly greeted Annie as she walked down the hall. In the kitchen, Sapphira and Auggie were chatting amicably, and in the living room, an Indonesian teenage girl was vacuuming the rug. Both were already dressed for the day, Auggie in dark jeans and a sharp white button-down and Sapphira in a dark teal silk blouse tucked into an ivory pencil skirt. Annie suddenly felt incredibly underdressed in her borrowed pajamas and bare feet.

"Good morning, sleepyhead!" Sapphira called over the sound of the vacuuming that quickly stopped as the Indonesian girl turned to smile at Annie and walked to the kitchen. "'Bout time you got up! Breakfast is getting cold. Auggie and I were just thinking of the best ways to wake you up. I was all for throwing ice water on you, but Auggie wanted to try something that wouldn't induce getting shot."

"Good morning to you too, Fira. Auggie." She was graced with a smile and nod from Auggie as he took a sip of his coffee.

"Selamat pagi, ibu. Eggs and bacon?" Annie moved toward the stove, but was quickly stopped by the Indonesian girl who already held a plate in one hand and a spatula in the other. The girl started scooping a pile of scrambled eggs and several strips of bacon onto the plate and brought it to her at the kitchen island. "Enough, ya?" She asked and Annie just nodded dumbly before accepting the food with a quiet thanks. "Bread," she pointed at the various types of rolls and buns in the center of the table.

Sapphira put her hand on the young woman's arm. "This is Rima. She does some cooking and cleaning around my other house in exchange for English lessons from me. She's finishing high school next year and plans to be a doctor. Rima, this is my friend Annie." Sapphira smiled proudly at the girl and nodded encouragingly.

"Halo, Ibu Annie. It is nice to meet you. Please tell me if there is something I may assist you with. May I make your bed now?"

"Uh, no, you don't have to..." Still slightly disoriented, Annie remembered from her time in Asia that having maids was common and didn't want to insult the girl, so she changed her mind. "Actually, let me grab my laptop and you may. Terima kasih." Annie set down her fork and padded to her bedroom to pick up her laptop. She heard the girl follow down the hall behind her. Annie managed a shaky smile at Rima as she left the room with her laptop in tow.

Annie took her seat at the kitchen island and pushed her eggs around her plate. She was a bit stunned by the turn of events of the past 24 hours. She would never have thought she would be sitting in a former CIA operative's kitchen, avoiding checking to see how Auggie was recovering from their early-morning confessionals, and eating eggs and bacon, of all things.

"You know, to actually consume the sustenance, you have to physically put the food in your mouth and swallow. But if you think you can glare at your food enough to get nutrients inside your body, go right ahead," Sapphira encouraged with false cheerfulness from across the table. She had a glimmer in her eyes and a smirk played on her lips. Annie had come to realize that this was Sapphira's default: snarky, slightly offensive, but ultimately caring.

Annie answered with an indulging twist of her lips before scooping a spoonful of eggs into her mouth and crunching on a strip of bacon. She scrunched up her nose like she would with her nieces. Fira rolled her eyes.

"Don't get used to eggs and bacon. I figured you'd want a good, wholesome, heart-stopping American breakfast your first day here, though. Oh, do you want coffee?" Sapphira stepped toward the coffee maker before Annie could answer and placed her own empty plate in the sink as she poured a mug of steaming black liquid. "You ever try kopi luwak?"

"Is that the coffee that that animal poops out?"

Sapphira chuckled. "Yep. It costs like $700 US for a kilo."

"Is that what you're pouring me?"

"Annie, I like you, but not $700 a kilo worth." Sapphira set down the mug in front of Annie. "You can buy me a cup, though." Annie shook her head but gratefully took a sip of the scalding nectar of the gods.

"Why are you dressed up?"

"I have an actual job to get to," Fira explained haughtily, causing Auggie to snort gracelessly. "I have to do a quick site visit. I need talk to some kid who's just having a _bitch_ of a time trying to file his taxes like an upright expatriate American citizen. The IRS wants him hunted down."

"You work for the IRS? I thought you were a lawyer," Annie questioned between mouthfuls of eggs and bacon. She didn't realize how hungry she was until she heard her fork scraping her plate and nothing was left on it. She reached for a cheesy roll at the center of the table.

"I am a lawyer. And an accountant. JD, CPA, and a few other letters. I got my Certified Internal Auditor certification, CIA, just for the irony. I can tell people I'm CIA now. I do contract work where I'm needed. The IRS contracted me on this one. _They_ think this kid thinks he's above the law now that he lives and works in Indonesia. Doesn't have to pay his taxes and all that."

"So what are you going to do?" Annie didn't really care, but she wanted to keep Sapphira here and talking so she wasn't alone with Auggie. Their emotional outburst in the middle of the night still weighed on Annie's mind. She wasn't sure how she was supposed to act around him anymore.

"Remind him that he is a citizen of the United States of America and until he renounces his citizenship, Uncle Sam will receive his cut," Sapphira answered automatically. "Wow, that sounded like I'm going to resort to torture techniques. I'll slap him with the word of the Law, then offer to set up his accounts so it's automatic tax payment. He probably just forgot."

"Hmm. Okay." Annie had finished her bread and her coffee and no longer knew what to do with her hands. She watched Sapphira move toward the refrigerator and pull out a blender full of some purple smoothie. She poured three glasses and set them in front of Annie and Auggie, taking a big gulp from her own.

"At your 11 o'clock, Aug. Blueberry lemonade protein shake with coconut milk. I'll be back by noon. You can do some exploring," Sapphira addressed Annie. "Rima is going to finish up here and come with me so I can drop her off at her place. The beach is a five minute walk southeast. Oh! Hold on."

Sapphira jogged toward the back of the apartment, leaving Auggie and Annie alone in the kitchen. Auggie cleared his throat and thought of what to say. He settled for simple. "Good morning, Walker."


	12. Chapter 12

Sapphira jogged toward the back of the apartment, leaving Auggie and Annie alone in the kitchen. Auggie cleared his throat and thought of what to say. He settled for simple. "Good morning, Walker."

"Morning. Sleep well?" Annie asked politely.

"Yeah. I see you did too." Auggie smiled wryly.

"Ha, yeah. Best night's sleep I've gotten in a long time." Both of them readily ignored that three hours did not count as a full night's sleep. "So, you up for some beach going this fine morning?"

"Actually, I'm going to meet up with an old friend."

"You have friends here?"

"Walker, don't you know? I have friends everywhere," Auggie let out a sincere laugh. "Fira and I worked a job here a long while ago. I'm meeting up with a guy who helped us out back then."

"Oh. What was it? The job you did here," Annie was genuinely curious. Auggie didn't talk about his missions from before he was blinded. Well, until recently, when she found out a lot with Helen and Teo, but she hadn't even heard about Fira before she came here.

"Classified. It went well until it didn't, and we got evac-ed," Auggie responded shortly.

"Oh." Annie chewed on her lip and toyed with her smoothie glass before taking another sip. It actually tasted really good.

"You can come with me, if you'd like," Auggie offered, reminding himself that he had to give something if he wanted to get anything from Annie.

"No, thank you. I think I will check out the beach. I could use a swim," Annie was pleased that Auggie offered, even if it was a hindsight proposal.

"The waves are pretty good for surfing too. It's rainy season until March, so the waves are especially high this time of year. You can rent a board for really cheap."

"Do you know how to surf?" Annie didn't think they had ever discussed surfing before.

"I used to. Don't think I can do much wave-spotting now. Fira was the one that taught me how, actually," Auggie smiled to himself as he remembered snippets of their first surf lesson. Fira never was particularly patient with him.

_"If you don't get on that damn board right this second, I am going to personally hog tie you, drape you over my shoulders like a fur coat, swim out further than you can see, and untie you only when the biggest wave of the season hits! You _will _learn how to surf while you are on this fucking beach!"_

_"Are you drowning? You better not be drowning, Anderson!"_

_"I know you grew up in Illinois. That is entirely irrelevant to your surfing abilities. I grew up one state over, so it's not like I had it any better. Now get your fine ass back on that board and let's go again!"_

Auggie snapped back when Annie set down her smoothie glass on the counter. "She was a great teacher. Really insured my safety. Do you know how?"

"I was beginning to learn," Annie started. She was beginning to learn in Sri Lanka. With Ben. She had only taken a few small waves closer to shore, but Ben was a pro. She didn't feel like bringing that up. "Maybe I should have Fira take me out some time."

"I'm sure she'd like that. And you have to try the coconuts. They're fresh, cut right in front of you."

"I'll have to get one. I miss fresh coconuts. D.C. is really lacking in that department," Annie tried to joke, but saw that Auggie got choked up when she mentioned something about home that she didn't like.

She was about to say something to make amends, but just then Sapphira busted into the kitchen area with the discreetness of a tornado, beige heels clicking loudly on the stone tile. "Aug, you good to go? Pak Dama just called. He'll be outside in five." Well, at least they made some strides in normal conversation.

"Just need to put my shoes on. My bag's on the table, right?" Auggie downed his smoothie then treaded toward the front door and the shoe rack next to it. He slipped on black dress shoes and pulled his messenger bag across his shoulders. Annie's mouth went dry as she watched his back muscles strain against his white shirt. She knew she was imagining it, but she swore she could see the outline of his tattoo. She really did miss him. _All_ of him.

"Annie," Sapphira interrupted and thrust a leather shoulder bag into Annie's hands. "Inside is a cell phone, encrypted. Mine is speed dial 1, Auggie's is 2. My driver's number is 3, but he doesn't speak much English. He knows who you are, so just give your location and he'll pick you up. That's only if you want to take a car anywhere.

"My bike is in the garage next to us, spot 34. Red and black Kawasaki Ninja, helmet under the seat. Gas is full, so you can go wherever. Bike and house keys are in the inside zipper. There's a wallet in there with my credit card and some cash. You can go shopping. Buy whatever you need. There's no limit on the card, but don't rack up a million dollars' worth of charge. Oh and there's a map, but everyone on this island speaks English, so you can just ask for directions." Annie stared at Sapphira in disbelief after she finished her unruffled but slightly hasty explanation. _None of this is normal. This can't be real._

"Seriously?"

"Yes. Your clothes are drying, so just go through my closet. You're about my size, 2 inches taller. But we can't share shoes; I'm a size 6 US. You'll have to settle for stomping around in your boots. Wifi password is on your desk, if you stay here; it's secure. But I suggest you go out and get some fresh air. The beach does wonders for healing."

"Okay," Annie breathed. She stole a glance at Auggie, who stood with his shoulder against the doorjamb and tried to conceal a grin at Annie's shock. "Um, when should I be back?"

"I'm not your mother. You don't have a curfew. I'll be back by noon, if you want to go to the beach in the morning then go shopping with me when I finish at the office. We could go to the gym too; I have a friend who owns a boxing gym in the city. Just text me and let me know." Sapphira grabbed her black briefcase and threw her clutch inside. She walked to the door and opened it, then tapped the back of Auggie's hand. Annie tried not to stare at how effortless Sapphira took the sighted lead position that Annie herself had done hundreds of times. Auggie didn't even open his cane.

"If you're going to Mason's gym, I could go for a few rounds," Auggie added to Sapphira. Annie briefly wondered what kind of missions they were involved in here and just how close both Fira and Auggie were to these people. If Sapphira had been out of the spy game for years now, she must have kept very good contact with their allies.

Rima appeared behind Annie with a folded towel and black swimsuit on top in one hand and a pair of flip flops dangling from the other. "The towel and swimsuit are clean. They belong to Ibu Sapphira. These are mine. We are approximately the same shoe size."

"Uh, thanks. Looks like I'm heading to the beach first. I think some sun and waves will do me some good," Annie decided just as Sapphira's phone rang. She handed the phone to Auggie who greeted the other person in surprisingly well-accented Indonesian.

"Good. You'll only need a few thousand rupiah in cash to take to the beach. They have a building with lockers. Sunscreen is in my bathroom. Use it. Meet me back here at noon? We'll eat something at the mall," Sapphira informed Annie and ushered Rima out the door first.

"Take a water bottle," Auggie advised as he closed the door behind him with a dazzling smile.

Annie stared dumbfounded at the door in front of her. _What the fuck just happened?_


	13. Chapter 13

"Selamat pagi, Pak," Auggie greeted their driver as he slid into the back seat. "Apa kabar?"

"Baik, baik, terima kasih, Pak Auggie. Ibu Sapphira, ke mana dulu?"

"Restoran Auggie itu, tolong." Sapphira settled in the back seat. "Kemudian kantor saya." She pulled out a file from her briefcase with every intention of going over the dossier of the 25 year old businessman not filing his taxes. The restaurant Auggie was meeting their old friend Ivan at was almost 30 minutes away with traffic, so she'd have plenty of time to review the mundane case.

"So." Auggie reached over and closed the file in Sapphira's lap with surprising accuracy.

"So." Sapphira countered and set the file on the seat between them.

"You didn't say anything to me this morning at breakfast."

"I said many things to you. I know you're getting old, but try to remember. We talked about the weather this week, about what restaurant you're going to with Ivan, about the kind of–"

"You know what I mean, Fir," Auggie interruped and rolled his eyes.

"Oh? Oh! You mean I didn't say anything to you about how you and Annie finally duked it out at 4 in the morning?"

"That's exactly what I mean. So. Let me have it," Auggie spread his arms as if he wanted her to attack him.

"It's good that you got your feelings out. Loudly. In the middle of the night. _Loudly_."

"That's it? That's all the commentary you have?"

"What do you want me to say, Auggie? Do you want me to applaud your ability to attack a vulnerable Annie? Scold you for that comparison you made to Mercer? It stung _me_ and I wasn't the one involved with him. However, I think you made progress. I think you still have a long way to go. You're welcome to do it here. Tell me when you want me out, because I'm not keen on listening to you two going at it."

"Sapphira, I am not going to _sexile_ you!"

"I meant 'going at it' like fighting, not 'going at it' like sex, but good to see where your mind's at. I think she needs a friend now more than anything. What about you? What do you need?" Sapphira turned the questioning on Auggie.

"I'm still not sure."

"She needs someone solid, dependable. So until you are sure, be her friend. And for the love of all things holy, stop being so awkward around her!" Sapphira snapped open her file again as they turned down another street. Auggie shut it again.

"Does she– Um, do you think..." Auggie trailed off.

"She needs you," Sapphira affirmed without needing him to ask her the question. "And the way she looks at you, Aug, she really loves you." She opened the file again, and this time Auggie just nodded. Sapphira's eyes scanned the page, but her mind drifted elsewhere.

"You going to tell Joan?"

"Not just yet."

"You've been here for three days now. Have you even checked in? I'm not much in the mood to have the CIA break down my door in pursuit of you," Sapphira wrinkled her nose at the idea.

"I checked in. Told her I was still looking," Auggie clarified. Sapphira nodded. She knew he hated lying to her more than he already did, but he probably wanted to keep Annie out of the line of fire for a little longer. With everything happening at Langley, it probably looked suspicious that Annie didn't come back right away.

"Auggie." Auggie turned his head at how serious Sapphira's voice was. "Did you mention me to Joan?"

"No. But she probably caught on. How many friends do I have here that I can stay with?"

Sapphira frowned. She admired Joan Campbell, but she definitely did not want any reunions with Joan. _Nothing I can do about it now. Plus, she just had a baby. She can't jump on a plane to check in anyway. But if there is any one woman who would drop everything for her operatives, it is Joan Campbell. _

They sat in pleasant companionship, listening to the Indonesian morning news from the radio. Sapphira thought Auggie had dozed off, which seemed next to impossible with the horns honking on the increasingly crowded roads as they approached the main city center. Auggie must really be tired.

"You're really doing a lot for her, Fira," Auggie stated bluntly when the silver Mercedes pulled into heavy traffic on the main road to the city. So he wasn't sleeping.

"You really did a lot for Danny." Sapphira didn't even look up. This was a conversation she did not want to start.

"Fira, this isn't about repaying your perceived debts to me, is it?"

"No."

"Liar." Count on Auggie to call her on her bullshit.

"Maybe that's why I got involved to begin with."

"Sapphira, in case you don't remember the actual outcome–" Auggie sighed, rubbing his hands on his jeans in a rare nervous gesture.

"But you still did what you could."

"Your brother _still_ died. You can't owe me for a mission I didn't succeed in."

"He was already living on borrowed time. You _still_ did everything you could," Sapphira snapped the file closed and took in Auggie's pained look. She wondered if he knew how much his eyes gave away. Maybe it was just from knowing him for so long. "And in case _you_ don't remember the actual outcome, half the Agency wanted me dead and the other half thought I _was_ dead after that day. Instead, Lorelai Azazel was the one that died and I got out alive. You were the one that forced me to keep living. Twice, if you recall."

Auggie let out a frustrated sigh. They had been partners; they couldn't keep score like this.

"But this isn't about you anymore, Aug. This is about Annie. As if I don't see the signs. She's on the verge of something dangerous. She's been running on all cylinders for too long. If she continues like this for much longer, she's going to go somewhere she can't come back from."

"This is about your monastic penance for the Azazel assassinations," Auggie stated blandly. It wasn't an accusation. It was simply the truth.

"This is about keeping an operative alive and sane." That was also the truth. "And I've got nothing to repent for with those."

"You don't owe me."

"You don't understand unpaid debts," Sapphira countered. "She's worth it to you. Which means she's worth it for me."

"Why?"

"Because you're my friend. Annie is important to you and you are important to me. By the transitive property..."

Auggie could read in to what she didn't say. She knew how important Annie was to him. If he lost her, he wasn't sure that he wouldn't lose himself. Even after all this time, Sapphira was still protecting him.

They have been through way too much to just be able to walk away from each other entirely. He reached over and squeezed her hand just as the car pulled to the side of the road. She squeezed back then tapped his knee. "We're here. Curbs are still really tall. Ivan is out front smoking. Give him my regards."

Sapphira pulled out her phone and scrolled down in her contacts.

"Sapphira, to what do I owe the pleasure?" His deep voice boomed through the speaker over the sound of some pop song and squealing girls.

"Got a favor to ask."

* * *

Annie grabbed a water bottle out of the refrigerator and placed it on the counter next to the towel and swimsuit. She grabbed the swimsuit and went to change in her room. Clad only in the black one-piece, she padded to Sapphira's room at the end of the hall. She sprayed on the SPF 55 sunscreen in Sapphira's bathroom.

Annie shuffled through Sapphira's drawers until she found a light blue cover-up to put over her swimsuit now, and athletic shorts and a t-shirt for later. She found a small gym bag and tossed the clothes, water bottle, phone, keys, and towel inside. She plucked a few bills from the wallet and put them at the bottom of the bag. Sliding on her flip flops, Annie strode outside the apartment and made sure the door was locked.

Exiting the apartment complex, Annie meandered in the general direction of where the waves sounded loudest. Children ran past her, squealing in their games. She heard the dog from the morning bark again. Annie arrived at the beach, noting restaurants were set up in one area and what seemed to be the locker complex next to it. She went inside the plain white building and sure enough there were lockers for her things. She paid for her key and tossed her bag inside the assigned locker, pinning the key to her swimsuit. Everything seemed so normal.

For the first time in such a long time, Annie didn't think of anything but the present moment, taking in the beautiful white sand and swimming out into the clear ocean azure. It was so refreshing that it brought a pain to Annie's chest.

_Danielle and the girls would love it here._

And just like that, Annie's mood fell worse. She hadn't called Danielle. She doubted Auggie or anyone from the Agency had either. Danielle and her nieces still thought she was dead. Was it even safe to tell them anything? Probably not. She didn't even want to contact her...handler, so she definitely couldn't call her civilian sister.

Annie pulled a few strokes further into the ocean before diving deep. She kept her eyes closed under the water until her lungs burned, then she waited a few more seconds before surfacing. The last time her lungs burned like this was when Eyal revived her from the dead.

Annie swam further out, letting the waves rock her for a long time. She let her thoughts roam, something painful and awful. Annie continued her deep dives, opening her eyes in the clear salt water every few seconds before coming up to gasp for breath.

Even when she was above the waves, Annie felt like couldn't get enough air, and suddenly she felt so tired. She didn't want to keep her head above the waves anymore.


	14. Chapter 14

Before Annie could let the ocean swallow her into its willing depths, she heard the rumbling of an engine of a jet ski. _So much for drowning._ She looked up and saw a handsome blonde man smiling down at her.

"Thought you were a person. My mates back there were sure you were a very beautiful plastic bag." The man spoke with an Australian accent and shot her a crooked smile. He killed the jet ski engine and sat on the edge of it. The spray of the ocean gathered in beads and slid down his muscular chest into his swim trunks. A few years ago, he would have been just her type. He slipped into the waves and began to tread water too.

"I am a person. Thanks for noticing," Annie replied.

"You're pretty far out," he noted. Annie had to squint to look back to shoreline. _Shit, I'm really far from shore._

"I'm a good swimmer."

"I can see that."

Annie just nodded politely. She wasn't much in the mood to talk to any strangers, no matter how attractive they are.

"Blake," he said by way of introduction.

"Sapphira," Annie threw out the first name that came to her mind. Much to her surprise, the man threw his head back and laughed. _Great. A mad man is chatting me up._

"And how are you doing, Sapphira?" Annie was taken aback by the sincerity in his voice.

"Been better, been worse. But I think the waves are doing their job in healing," Annie answered bluntly.

"They always do. 'The cure for anything is salt water. Sweat, tears, or the sea'," Blake quoted.

"Isak Dinesen," Annie smiled softly at the familiar quote.

"_The Deluge at Norderney, Seven Gothic Tales_, 1934. Though, I prefer her real name, Karen Blixen, over her pen name." Blake dipped his head under the water and pushed his golden hair back. "I hope your cure comes quickly."

"So do I." Annie floated on her back, within reaching distance of a complete stranger who did the same. They stayed like that in silence for some time, letting the sun beat down on them both. Annie strategically kept her mind blank of thoughts of her life, instead focused on the Australian man, making sure he didn't make any surprise movements. It felt good to stop thinking about her family and start concentrating on her mini-mission of making sure Blake didn't kill her. He seemed like a normal traveler.

"Sapphira, let me tell you about the first time I got kicked by a kangaroo." And with that, Blake began a story that was wild and incomprehensible from start to finish. Without realizing it, Annie was laughing along with the ridiculous story, adding in her own comments and questions. They swapped stories of their world travels, the best and strangest places they've been, the weirdest food they'd tried. Annie felt surprisingly light.

As their conversation lulled, Blake turned to ask, "What do you say you join us for some drinks back shore?"

"Thanks for the offer, but I'm just here for a quick swim."

"You're pretty far out for anything quick," Blake tossed back with a smirk. "How about tonight?"

"Maybe. I'm here with some friends. I'll have to see what they want to do. They mentioned some night club at the other side of the island, I think," Annie lied easily.

"Well, maybe isn't a no. We should all tee up before you leave here, huh?"

"Sure." Annie had no intention of seeing this man again, even if he could make her laugh.

"You want a ride back? You can even jump off whenever you'd like," Blake offered Annie his hand to lift her on the back of his jet ski. She really didn't want to swim all the way back to shore, and he seemed to sense that. Annie nodded and took his hand. He took his position at the front of the jet ski and turned around to tell her, "Hold on. I like to go fast."

"So do I." Annie flashed a smile and looped her arms around his waist. Annie stared at the Australian army insignia that Blake had inked on his right shoulder blade. _Great. Another military man._

They rode in silence back to the sandy shore. Blake waved to his friends, gathered under a hut with a barbecue pit out front. He pulled the jet ski onto the wet sand and looked at her with smiling green eyes lighting up his tan face. "Sure you don't want to join us, Sapphira?"

Annie appreciated his offer, she really did. During her travels after college, she would have accepted without a second thought. She tried to force herself to remember what it was like to blindly trust people, to assume the good in everyone. She stopped trying before she could. She glanced at her watch.

"Oh, it's past 11. I didn't realize how long I was out here. I should be getting back to our hotel. I promised my friend I'd go shopping with her at noon." Annie was glad she didn't have to lie to this man, any more than she already had. There was something about him, some pure happy aura that she associated with her own pre-CIA life.

Blake nodded knowingly. "Well, Sapphira, I'm glad to have had the pleasure to speak with you. Do you have a phone?"

"No, I'm kind of off the grid right now." _How true that is. _"We're leaving tomorrow anyway. I hope you enjoy your time in Bali, Blake."

"You too, Sapphira," Blake laughed again. "Maybe fate will bring us together again soon."

Annie smiled before heading up the sandy beach to the side street. She took the long way to the lockers and grabbed her bag. In the women's lockerroom, she stripped off her swimsuit and threw on Sapphira's tshirt and shorts. She'd take a shower when she got back to Sapphira's apartment.

* * *

Sapphira bustled through the door, kicking off her heels and sweeping them up in her hand. "Yes, you have my account number. Direct deposit please... No, it shouldn't be a problem anymore. His employer just didn't explain anything to him. Poor kid thought he was going to be deported... He offered to pay interest on his back taxes. Someone didn't pay attention in their personal finance class... Excellent. Thank you, Sharon. Have a nice day too. Thanks, bye."

She let out a groan, "Tolol tidak kompeten." Sapphira walked to the back of the apartment and placed her shoes back in her closet. The floorboard outside her door creaked and without a second thought, Sapphira pulled her gun and aimed at the doorway.

"I didn't know you carried," Annie stated calmly and nodded at Fira's beloved Beretta 92FS.

"How was the beach?" Sapphira asked instead of explaining, setting the gun on a shelf in the walk-in closet. She took in Annie's appearance: hair air drying, a bit frizzy and curling at the ends, wearing one of her looser sundresses, gun strapped to her thigh, no doubt. "Nice dress."

"Thanks. You're other clothes are hanging in my bathroom. It was good. It was...refreshing," Annie settled. "I swam pretty far out, but a nice Australian man on his jet ski gave me a ride back to shore," Annie chuckled slightly and padded barefoot to the couch in the corner of Fira's room. She curled up on one end, tucking her feet under her and playing with the hem of the dress.

"Oh, I _bet_ he did," Sapphira intoned suggestively and winked exaggeratedly at Annie for good measure. Much to her delight, Annie smiled genuinely.

Fira shamelessly stripped off her blouse and skirt, her back to Annie. Annie's jaw dropped as she continued to stare. Fira's entire back was a tessellation of faded white shiny lines, some places looking like she had had chunks of her skin gouged out. Fira shook out the curls in her hair and caught Annie's eye over her shoulder. Annie blushed and averted her eyes.

"Whips with fish hooks at the tips," Sapphira offered without prompting.

"Where did you get them?" Annie asked tentatively.

"Hell." Fira uttered the single word with such finality that Annie couldn't bring herself to ask any other questions. Not for the first time, Annie wondered what Fira had seen during her time at the Agency, what she'd been through. She seemed so normal, so well-adjusted. But she carried the physical manifestation of human cruelty on her skin.

Fira slipped into a short-sleeved, soft blue cotton dress with a flowing skirt, and gladiator wedge heels, then strapped her gun to her right thigh. Annie looked carefully but could only barely make out the outline of the gun. She was still in shock from Sapphira's scars. They were well cared for, faded a good measure, so they had to have been from years ago. Annie subconsciously skimmed her fingers across the raised skin from Lena's bullets.

"They don't hurt. Physically, anyway."

"Is that why you left the Agency?"

"We're trained to withstand torture, remember?" Sapphira held Annie's eyes. "But I still think it's really brave of you to go back to the Agency. After you were captured in Russia." Annie didn't bother questioning how Sapphira knew about Russia.

"What else would I do?" Annie tried to think of what else she could do in her life. This job had become so ingrained into her life. This job _became_ her life. Of course she would have a prosperous career as a language professor or something. But the thrill of fighting the evil in the world brought her back to the Agency after Russia. _And Auggie._

"Become a lawyer." Sapphira shrugged dismissively and started down the hall. "You good to go? Let's hit the mall first, then we can stop by the grocery store to pick up some food. My driver is outside."

"Uh, yeah. Yeah," Annie jogged to catch up. She reminded herself to ask Auggie about Sapphira's back later. But for now, she needed a new wardrobe to replace the same 6 pieces she had.


	15. Chapter 15

"Do you want any booze? The alcohol tax here is outrageous, but totally worth it when you're in the mood to get massively fucked up," Sapphira explained as she pushed the shopping cart to the next aisle of fruit. She examined a red dragonfruit before dropping several into her cart.

"I'm just glad to have new underwear. I don't really need much else."

"Yeah, the ten bags of clothes in my car suggest you needed more than just underwear," Sapphira teased.

"You practically threw them at me!" Annied defended. Their shopping had been very successful. Annie recognized her blossoming friendship with Sapphira. She really needed more girl friends in her life. "And don't you have something at your apartment? I don't really have a preference."

"Just some tequila. Good, faithful, ole Patrón. Always has been my favorite."

"Patrón is Auggie's favorite too. He even keeps a bottle in his desk drawer." Annie thought back to when she first started. When she looked up, Sapphira stared at her like she had seen a ghost.

"Wait, what? Did he ever tell you why?" She asked quietly then intensely stared at the papayas in her hands.

"He explained that's how you make it through with our jobs. His exact words were something to the extent of keeping a healthy sense of humor and a bottle of Patrón in his desk drawer. I think this was my first week with the Agency, so I was _so_ thrown. Strange, right?" Annie laughed lightly.

"Yeah. Strange," Sapphira agreed, but Annie could see her mind was miles and years away from their present conversation.

_F__ira sat on the edge of her desk, waiting for Auggie to look up, or even remove his fingers from pressing into his temples. She noted that he moved her chair up. She finally got that damn chair to the perfect height for her legs and he went and fucked it up. If he hadn't just gotten caught in an explosion, she might be more angry at him._

_"I know the feeling," she tried in a soft voice._

_"My brain is going to explode."_

_"I have some 'script ibuprofen, I think," Fira offered._

_"Yeah, right. Like 800mg of ibuprof is going to help with this headache. The next time I get blown up, remind me to get the good stuff. Ignore instincts and training, and ask for the Vicodin."_

_Sapphira leaned down and reached into the bottom drawer of the desk she rarely sat at. She pulled out a bottle with a tiny green bow tied across the top. "Patrón?" She offered him._

_He finally looked up and stared at her in disbelief. "You have _tequila _in your desk?"_

_"It helps to keep a bottle of Patrón in your desk drawer. It's not like I'm here often. But when I'm here, I sure as hell need it. This office is hell. This job is hell."_

_"Maybe a healthy sense of humor would work just as well."_

_"Why not both?" Sapphira produced two shot glasses, laughably hot pink with "D.C." inscribed in silver glitter. "A healthy sense of humor and a bottle of Patrón in your desk drawer. Keeps you sane in this line of work." She poured them both a generous shot. "Here's to humor and Patrón and living another day!"_

"Sapphira?"

Sapphira shook her head and continued down the fruit aisle to the pineapples. "Yeah, let's grab some coconut rum. We're making piña coladas tonight."

* * *

"Was it worth it?" Annie asked, breaking the comfortable silence between them, as she chopped pineapples for their drinks. It was almost dinner time and Auggie still hadn't come back. Sapphira didn't seem worried, so Annie didn't say anything about it. Their shopping spree and the grocery store took a good portion of the day, and the traffic on the way back to the apartment was atrocious. Auggie was probably stuck in traffic too.

"Was what worth it?" Sapphira didn't look up from her task of peeling coconut flesh from inside a baby coconut.

"Everything you did with the Agency. For the Agency."

"Oh, Annie. I've been asking myself that for nearing two decades now. I still don't have a definitive answer."

"Oh." This was clearly not what Annie wanted to hear.

Sapphira tried again. "That's for you to decide, Annie. When you wake up in the morning, or in the middle of the night, you have to ask yourself if in your life, the life that you made through your own choices_— _Does the good in your life outweigh the nightmares? If you can say yes to that, even hesitantly or just barely, then maybe it was worth it."

"Does the good in your life outweigh your nightmares?"

"Not always," Sapphira answered. Annie frowned. "But I'm getting there. And you'll get there too. It might take awhile, but you will."

"And if I don't? If the nightmares always outweigh the good?"

"Then find something good to remind yourself why you push through the nightmares. I don't think you'll have to look too far for that good, Annie." Sapphira looked pointedly at Annie and nodded her head toward the back of the apartment and Auggie's bedroom. Annie felt her cheeks heat and concentrated harder on cutting smaller pieces of pineapple. She turned the conversation around.

"What about you? What's your good?"

Sapphira looked down and pretended she couldn't feel the tears pressing against her eyes. The corner of her lip twisted up instead. "I'm still working on that."

Again, Annie wondered about Fira's time at the Agency. If she was nearing two decades since she started with the Agency, just how young was she when she started? It wasn't common to have teenage assets or informants, but maybe in the rougher neighborhoods in bad countries it could be possible. "When did you join the CIA?"

"I was recruited the summer after I graduated college. Sent immediately to the Farm," Sapphira gave her standard answer.

"Unofficially?" Sapphira smiled gently at Annie. This girl was perceptive and persistent. She must be indispensable to the CIA. Except she was dispensed, labeled as a traitor. She didn't have a star on the wall. Even though Annie didn't actually die, this rankled Sapphira. Annie Walker was one hell of an American hero.

"Unofficially, I was recruited as an asset my first year of college. They say this shit doesn't happen, but it does. My handler/partner, Michael, approached me with an offer I couldn't quite refuse. He knew I had some connections to someone he wanted to meet. I worked with him, off the books, as his sort-of partner throughout college. He trained me. I was sent to the Farm right after I got my diploma."

"That's when you met Auggie?"

"Yes. It was exciting. Not always glamorous, but I didn't really want glamorous anyway. I was in it for the thrill."

"What was your mission as a freshman in college?" Annie didn't bother to mask the skepticism of the worth of an 18 year old girl as a CIA operative.

"Get me drunk and maybe I'll tell you," Sapphira answered cheekily. They chopped in silence for a while longer.

"Did you ever forgive yourself, for everything you had to do as an operative?"

"Annie, I never _had_ to do anything. It was always a choice. You always have a choice." Sapphira's pep talk was starting to sound too much like Auggie's for Annie's liking. "I forgave myself for the choices I made. And eventually, so did everyone around me."

"Did Auggie?" Annie asked quietly.

"He's forgiven me for a lot of bad decisions. But he has some forgiveness to ask for from you too," Sapphira stated knowingly with a prim arch of her brow.

"Ugh, does everyone know about that?" Annie groaned. _Yes, Annie, the entire world knows that your then-boyfriend fucked his zombie wife. Everyone is pissed about it!_

"Probably not everyone. I can almost guarantee that my driver hasn't heard about it." Annie shook her head, but still smiled.

"Thanks. I feel _so_ much better," Annie replied with an eye roll.

"Have you two talked about it?"

"About Auggie..." Annie tried to stall and find a way to divert the conversation.

"Fucking his zombie wife," Sapphira clarified, as if it were the most obvious thing to say.

"His _what_?"

"His dead undead, now for real dead, wife. Zombies return from the dead."

"You are terrible," Annie still suppressed a smile. Dark humor. Add that to Fira's list of specialties. "Not yet, but we're adults and I trust him. So if he says it won't happen again, it won't happen again. Probably because we aren't together and won't be in the foreseeable future." Sapphira hummed in acknowledgement. "It's not that I don't want to be with him, but I don't think either of us are particularly equipped to deal with a relationship right now. Everything is too raw." Sapphira hummed again. "Not that I deserve him."

"You don't always get what you deserve. Sometimes you just get what you get and make of it what you can."

Their conversation was cut short with the scraping of a key in the door. They both instinctively drew their weapons. Annie noted that Sapphira held her gun only with her right hand and the 20cm cutting knife twirled dangerously around her left wrist as if it was a toy.

"Lower your weapons, please," Auggie's voice called through the apartment. Both of them did.

"What weapons?" Sapphira asked innocently as she dropped her coconut slices into the blender.

"Annie— Glock 17. Fira— Beretta 92FS and since you were chopping pineapple, whatever knife you were using is in your left hand. And you're doing that menacing thing where you twirl the damn blade around your hand," Auggie recited casually. He toed off his shoes and placed them carefully on the shoe rack.

"Lucky guess," Annie muttered playfully and added her pineapple chunks to the blender.

"Actually, I was cutting coconut. Annie was on pineapple duty. So you're wrong."

"Barely. Piña coladas?" Auggie took out a bulging manila envelope from his messenger bag and held it up.

"If I hadn't been there when you got back from Iraq, I would still doubt that you were blind, Aug." Sapphira pranced over and snatched the file out of his hands gleefully and began to undo the tie on the top flap. "And what do we have here?"

Auggie smiled and a dangerous glint played in his eyes. "Just some complimentary intel from our friend Ivan. Annie, you'll want to take a look at this."

* * *

**Author's Note: Thank you all so much for reading and reviewing. This concludes the first part of the story. Now let's work on finding who's hunting Annie, shall we? Tell me what you think so far!**


	16. Chapter 16

**PART TWO**

Sapphira seemed to sense that they all needed to let out some steam after examining the file from Auggie's friend Ivan. Annie's mind had clouded over with thoughts of never ending mission-oriented tasks, hunting down sources, turning assets. Her previously light mood was long gone, replaced with a fear that she covered with hatred and determination. Sapphira had driven them herself to a gym in the city center, despite it being nearly one in the morning by the time they all filed out of the apartment door clad in workout gear and barely-suppressed energy. Annie was surprised to see a sleek black Mercedes parked in the spot next to Sapphira's motorcycle, but didn't comment as she slid into the back seat, Auggie in the passenger side and Sapphira behind the wheel.

Sapphira weaved in an out of traffic into the city, dangerously fast, past dance clubs and neon lights and young tourists in sky high heels, to gym called "Mason's." Even though the gym was closed, Sapphira produced a key and let them in, locking the door behind her again and guiding them through to one of the back offices where she turned on half the lights in the gym. As she walked past the second office, Fira bent down and slid a white envelope under the door. Annie tried not to get suspicious. Auggie trusted Fira, and she trusted Auggie, so she had to trust that he knew who to trust.

There was one side of the gym with machines and the other with a boxing ring. Sapphira was on a treadmill and Auggie lifted free weights, but Annie needed one thing. The solid collision of her fist against a punching bag. Annie's knuckles started to throb the more she pounded at the punching bag in front of her.

Annie couldn't believe her fucked-up luck. Auggie's friend came through, but with some really shitty news. She felt her arms start to burn and continued to hit the bag anyway. She was terrified, confused. So she took out her emotions on the bag.

_"Fuck," Sapphira breathed. When she didn't expand on what she was reading, Annie moved to scan the page over her shoulder. She was surprised to see the documents written in English, but pleased that she wouldn't have to rely on Sapphira to translate for them._

_"Turns out Henry was involved with funding the Islamic extremist terrorist organization Jemaah Islamiyah. Possibly providing intel too. Wow, reportedly since 2002, bombings here in Bali," Annie read for Auggie's benefit. Auggie inhaled sharply and ran his hands through his hair. He turned away from them and took another deep breath._

_Sapphira's hands started to shake and she passed the file to Annie. She moved toward Auggie and reached for his forearm. He immediately pulled her into an embrace and murmured something into her hair. Annie stared, even though she felt like she was intruding on a personal moment. She forced her eyes down to the page and continued reading. When she looked up again, Sapphira was smoothing back her hair into a ponytail and Auggie was grasping the edge of the counter as if it was the only thing to keep him grounded in the present moment._

_"We were here, running on the beach when the bombs went off," Sapphira whispered in explanation. "We were evac-ed so our actual mission in the region wasn't compromised. We were stuck in a safe house for a week before we were told anything. Lost twelve of our own during a raid to capture the members of JI. They were good men. Five had families back home. One was going to propose when his girlfriend came to visit the next week."_

_"I hope Wilcox is burning in hell right now," Auggie added grimly. They would all deny seeing his hands shake._

Annie felt her shoulders start to cramp and forced them to relax. She struck the bag harder and fought the tears of frustration. She just wanted to go home. It seemed like nothing she did, nothing she sacrificed, was worth it. There was always another enemy. Annie reminded herself that this is her life, the life she chose. It wasn't the first time that she thought about it. She hated it.

_"The one Henry was closest to is codenamed 'Ular Tanah.'"_

_"Malayan pit viper. Very venomous. Very deadly," Sapphira translated for Annie. The file was spread across the dining room table. Sapphira and Annie stood over the papers and Auggie paced the room trying to control the trembling in his hands and the ghosts dancing behind his closed eyelids._

_"I've had more than enough of my share of terrorists with animal names," Annie muttered under her breath. Auggie moved next to Annie and brushed his fingers over hers but wasn't surprised when she didn't take them. Annie jerked her hand away from his and he continued his steps across the room, mind racing. "Real name?"_

_Sapphira flipped the page over. "Unknown."_

_"Last location?" Annie searched her own papers for an answer._

_"Unknown."_

_"Known associates?" Annie started to get frustrated.  
_

_"Unidentified members of JI around the globe."_

_"So basically unknown," Annie sighed angrily. "We have nothing." S__he slammed her hands against the table. _

_"We have proof Wilcox was involved with JI," Sapphria stated calmly. "We have a code name. We have-"_

_"How is that supposed to help us? We don't have pictures of the guy. We don't have chatter of any JI members searching for a dead American woman. We don't even know if it's JI that's after me."_

_"They're our best bet right now. Ular Tanah had some big plans with Henry inside the Agency. The CIA, __Australian Secret Intelligence Service, and Indonsia's Badan Intelijen Negara _has been trying to shut down JI for ages. If Ular Tanah had an in with the CIA through Wilcox, JI could view the next moves from the CIA, probably even from ASIS and BIN. You destroyed that in. Ular Tanah wants to destroy you," Sapphira recited clinically.

_Annie exhaled through her nose and centered herself._

_"Sapphira's right. It makes the most sense," Auggie agreed. _

_"How do you know this intel is solid? Can you trust your source? Didn't JI start in Indonesia anyway?"_

_"JI started in Malaysia, but don't you dare generalize everyone in a country as a terrorist," Sapphira snapped at Annie. They held each other's glare until Auggie sighed. _

_"Ivan is credible. He's been with us for years. I trust him," Auggie stated with confidence. Annie brushed her hands through her hair and shook her head. She opened her mouth to argue with Auggie but Sapphira cut her off._

_"We're going to the gym," Sapphira announced then stalked to the back of the apartment without waiting for their responses. Auggie and Annie turned and followed anyway, putting on their gym clothes within minutes._

Annie was so engrossed in attacking the bag that she didn't hear Auggie come up behind her until he reached for her waist. Instinctively, she pulled his arm forward and knocked out his knee until he was lying face down on the floor with his arms pulled behind his back.

"Ease up, Walker," was all he said. She rolled off of him and onto her back on the floor with a sigh. He moved to his knees and cracked his neck. "Sorry. Thought you heard me."

"Yeah," Annie breathed. She glanced over to note Sapphira was still sprinting on the treadmill, her lithe muscles glistening in the lowered lighting of the gym.

"Come on," Auggie held out his hand for her to take. She didn't take his hand but got up on her own. He sighed. "I know this is a lot to take in-"

"A lot to take in? A lot to _take in_? Auggie, Henry's Indonesian counterpart is after me! What kind of fucked up luck is it that I hopped on the first boat to the home country of the man that is after me! Of all the fucking Asian countries, it _had_ to be this one."

"I know, but-"

"If the entire intelligence communities from three different countries cannot locate and eliminate this man, let alone find out his real fucking name, what makes you think that the three of us can?" Annie's anger masked a hint of a defeated note in her voice.

"Because I want to keep you safe. I will do anything to keep you safe," Auggie reached for Annie's waist and was pleased when she didn't move away. He felt her tense up, though, so he dropped his hand. Maybe touching was not something that their new relationship could include just yet.

"We need reinforcements," Annie relented. "We can't do this by ourselves."

"We can call Calder in the morning. Let's go now. We need to sleep," Auggie encouraged. Annie nodded. "Fira!"

Without slowing her pace, Sapphira threw the keys to her car to Annie, who just barely had enough time to catch them. "Let me stretch! Drive around front."

Auggie smiled at Annie, "Want me to drive?" Annie didn't bother forcing her lips to turn up to a smile.


	17. Chapter 17

When they arrived back to Sapphira's apartment, none of them could sleep. None of them even pretended to sleep. They stayed in the living room, laptops out, typing furiously. Sapphira had her headphones in, some fast bass pumping through loud enough that Annie could hear the beat from across the table. Auggie sat at the edge of the couch with his laptop and braille reader on the coffee table. At some point, Sapphira got up to get them all cups of black tea and yogurt in a motherly gesture of concern for their well-being.

Sapphira's ringing phone on the kitchen counter startled all of them, Annie and Sapphira both instinctively reaching for their weapons before looking at the phone. "Ya, apa kabar?" Sapphira answered and moved toward the back of the apartment.

Annie and Auggie returned to their own laptops, scanning through databases, both their own and foreign government's access points.

"Anything?" Auggie asked and took off his headphones.

"I've been scanning BIN's database for anything related to Ular Tanah. Mostly it's a series of targeted attacks, specifically at the families of his enemies. Not even the enemies themselves, that fucking coward. The youngest was a two year old, tortured and left for dead at the side of the road. His cell likes to keep women," Annie shuddered and tried to keep her mind from drifting to her sister and nieces. Ular Tanah had a preference for corrosive acid and water torture, on top of the violent sexual assaults that likely pervaded his terrorist cell. He probably let his men rape the women as a reward for their loyalty. This man didn't fuck around.

"The CIA has similar reports," Auggie confirmed. "Wait. When did you learn to crack foreign intelligence databases?"

"I picked up some new skills when I went dark," Annie replied shortly. She was annoyed at the hint of disbelief in Auggie's voice. She was a very capable operative, maybe not as tech-savvy as he was, but she could do basic tasks like hacking into foreign intelligence databases. Auggie chose to ignore the edge to her voice.

"Recent chatter says there is a suspicious Dutch contact, likely female, that who the CIA believes is Ular Tanah may have regained contact with after years of nothing. Sapphira has a Dutch friend who might be able to give us something with that."

"If I can get to the Netherlands, I can turn the woman, get her to give us something on Ular Tanah." Annie's mind started whirling before Auggie cut her off.

"You can't leave the country," Auggie asserted with a roll of his eyes.

"What?" Annie seethed. She knew the glare she sent him was useless, but she still fired daggers with her eyes at him.

"You were followed, potentially by a member of a Southeast Asian terrorist group. And this was even _after_ you faked your death. MSS hasn't gotten over the shit storm you left in Hong Kong. Traveling anywhere is dangerous. We don't even know if the woman is real," Auggie rationalized. He stood up and stretched his arms over his head before walking towards the table Annie was seated at. Annie ground her teeth but didn't say anything else. "Let's wait until Fira gets out here and we can figure out what she knows."

They stayed in silence for awhile. Both trying to keep their minds from weaving plans too detailed too quickly.

"What was it like, working with Sapphira?" Annie asked distractedly as she readjusted the bun on top of her head. Auggie leaned against the table, close enough that he could reach out and touch her.

"If there is one woman you want on your team, it's Fira. She had a fondness for batshit crazy plans on missions that had no hope in succeeding. Somehow, though, she always made them work. She was a better operative than I was, am, ever was. She's _still_ a better liar than I am, and I consistently convince the polygraph guys that I'm not blind."

Annie made a questioning noise, "What?"

"Ha, standard questions to set the poly, you know. Is your name August Anderson? Yes. Are you from in Illinois? Yes. Are you blind? No."

Annie let out a snort thinking about his antics. She could picture Auggie doing this to the poor polygraph guys. "And they believe you?"

"No, they can clearly see that I can't clearly see. The polygraph never detects a change, though." Auggie chuckled lightly. "But Sapphira. Fira was something of a legend when it came to beating the polygraphs. To lying, to playing the part. I've witnessed her _become_ someone else. It's frighteningly unreal. She can switch seamlessly from back alley whore working for cocaine to madame of the classiest New York escort service; from hard-ass, take-no-shit CEO to beaten, submissive housewife. All in the blink of an eye."

Annie didn't say anything, so Auggie continued, wanting the fill the chilly silence between them.

"She attributed it to have practiced her lying as a rebellious teenager. 'No, dad, of course I didn't sneak out of the house to see my boyfriend.' That kind of thing. I always thought it was something more. I couldn't place it exactly, but she got to be a good liar through some experience that I despise. But it made her the best that the Agency had to offer. Her scores at the Farm are still largely unbeatable, I've been told.

"There was, is something about Sapphira that draws people in. She's not particularly nice or sweet or delicate. But something about her made people want to trust her. Something inherent, not something anyone could fake. Even under the deepest of covers, there was still something so _Sapphira_."

"Why would she quit? If she was so good. Even not as a field agent, she would make a good boss. She had enough experience that she could guide her agents through just about any mission," Annie reasoned, her mind flashing to the faded marks across Sapphira's back. _A whip. Who even uses a whip?_

"Did you ask her?"

"She said it was a story for another time."

"It's not really my story to tell, Annie."

"Auggie, an operative like Sapphira doesn't just walk away from the spy game."

"She never completely walked away. I mean, look at us now."

"Auggie."

"Annie." Auggie could hold a stalemate just as well as Annie could.

"I saw her scars."

Auggie scrubbed his hand down his face. But he figured that if he opened up, Annie would too. "When it happened, after it happened, I let her down. I really— When she needed me, I wasn't there. I was her partner, and honestly more than that, for long enough to feel like I should have...I don't know, done _something_."

"Unless you physically took a whip to her back, it's not your fault. She knew what she was getting into when she signed up for this job," Annie tried, but Auggie shook his head. In a timid voice, "Did you..._see_ them?"

"I saw them. Felt them. Had nightmares about them. She's impossibly strong."

"She didn't have much of a choice. What happened?"

Auggie paused to listen to make sure Sapphira was still in the back part of the house before continuing to whisper. "She was on a black ops mission, completely and entirely off the books, that much I know for sure. Rumors said that the 7th floor sanctioned an assassination on a foreign dignitary or political figure. Other rumors said it was for _everyone_ in that country's government. But those are rumors. I'm almost certain that it _was_ a contract hit, though. She never missed the shot. She still hasn't told me which country it was, and I haven't even been able to narrow it down to which part of the world she was held in."

"The mission was blown." Annie didn't have to ask; she'd been through a few of her own blown missions to know where the story was going.

"She was captured. And that's really all I know. She was held captive for an unknown amount of time, in an unknown location, by unknown enemies. Everyone in the Agency heard about her capture soon enough; you know how quickly gossip spreads. There was a huge uproar because everyone wanted her back home and no one was doing anything. I mean, no one _could_ do anything. The Powers That Be denied everything. It was like you in Russia, except at least then we knew where you were captured and reportedly where you were held. I'm not diminishing what happened to you in Russia, Annie," Auggie covered quickly and Annie acknowledged that with a hum. Auggie sighed again before continuing.

"I couldn't find _anything. _I was on the mission with Helen at the time, though, so I couldn't give her my full attention. I feel like she still resents me for it, deep down, for not coming for her. Whatever her captors did broke her. Not like broke her, like got her to talk. She didn't talk. Not when she was held captive, and not when she came back either, for a long time. It was as if they kept her voice captive after she got out. What she went through, physically? You saw the scars. But no one knows just how bad it got. I was her partner and I still don't know anything."

"You know all you need to know." Sapphira chose that moment to stalk through the hall, catching Annie and Auggie gossiping like schoolgirls but at least having the wherewithal to look ashamed.

Auggie forgot how silent she is when she walked. She continued stoically, "I came back from Location X, marched through the halls of Langley one last time to one last debrief, and told the suits on 7 to go fuck themselves in every language I knew." Her voice held nothing besides caustic fury, and Auggie hoped that that rage was not directed at him.

"Fir—" Auggie opened his mouth to try to explain why he was just disclosing the worst of her past to Annie as if it was no big deal. He realized he had no explanation. He was using her past hell as a way to win back Annie's trust.

"I'm sorry. I asked him," Annie appeased. "I wanted to know about the scars."

"Okay," Sapphira stated in such a way that they both knew it was most definitely not okay. "What did you find?"


	18. Chapter 18

"Who was that?" Auggie asked Sapphira as she took her place back at the table.

"Old friend," Sapphira replied cryptically and didn't elaborate. "What did you find?"

"The more I find out about this guy, the more likely it seems that someone from JI is hunting me; they really wanted CIA intel. We didn't find much, though," Annie answered. "BIN just reports a bunch of torture techniques and reported sightings, none of which have been in the Bali area for years. Ular Tanah is el jefe to a team of JI in an unknown compound somewhere on the outskirts of the city. CIA tried to raid a suspected compound, got nothing. The Bali unit of JI went deep underground three years ago when Ular Tanah seemed to fall off the grid. His techniques of eliminating enemies still pops up every once in awhile. Hits the family members first."

"Big on psychological torture of his enemies then, too. Wonderful," Sapphira said sarcastically. She turned to Auggie, "CIA?"

"You're not curious as to how I know about BIN reports?" Annie asked and cocked her head. Sapphira seemed to roll with the punches almost too well. Even though she was out of the spy game, nothing seemed to shock her.

"You're a spy. You can do shit," Sapphira stated unnecessarily. She was in full business mode. "CIA?"

"CIA didn't give anything better, basically the same reports. Ular Tanah is reportedly residing in a town outside of Amsterdam with an unknown woman, but even that is sketchy intel at best." Auggie efficiently recited.

"Anything from ASIS databases?" Sapphira asked without looking up from her rapid typing.

"Haven't been able to access their servers yet. They must have upgraded their security systems recently. Can we contact Mason instead of trying to break the code? This is something Barber would be able to do probably faster than I can, but I don't think we need to bring him in just yet if we have an inside source."

"Langley is in distress mode. Try to keep it minimal unless we absolutely need them. Already done, though. Left a note under the office door at the gym. Mason'll make contact soon," Sapphira explained. Annie nodded, _So that's what she was doing._ "Look, it's nearly oh-six hundred. The sun is coming up. We can either chug a gallon of coffee each and continue for the day, or we can try to get some sleep. I'm going to try to sleep for a few hours."

"Don't you have to go to work?" Annie asked. She didn't want Fira ignoring her real responsibilities in order to go on a wild-goose chase on an unknown leader of a terrorist group for her.

"No. I'm taking the week off and giving Rima the week too, so we're on our own for food and keeping this place relatively clean. If you go out, cover with a scarf and watch your back. You're inevitably being searched for. Let me know if you need more cash. Good morning to you both." With that, Sapphira closed her laptop and started down the hall. "Oh, Auggie? Tinggal bersamanya. Jangan biarkan Annie lari."

Annie decided that she hated the Indonesian language. And possibly Sapphira. But definitely how Sapphira used Indonesian as a way to keep Annie excluded from the conversation. As if Annie didn't know they were talking about her; Sapphira even used her name.

"What did she say?" Annie demanded at Auggie after Sapphira had shut her door. He stalled for a moment before replying.

"She doesn't want you to go off on your own."

"When did you even learn Indonesian? I didn't know you spoke it."

"You're not the only language expert here, Walker," Auggie tried to joke. Annie didn't laugh. "Fira and I were stationed here almost straight out of the Farm. It's been a long while since I've even used it."

"Oh. Mason is your mutual spy friend then?"

"Yeah. She's ASIS intelligence. Possibly former, I haven't talked to her in awhile. Her brother owns the gym," Auggie explained calmly.

"She?" Annie's brow furrowed.

"Yeah, Cami Mason." Annie hummed in acknowledgment. Auggie decided to push on, "Listen, Annie, we all need to sleep. This can continue in 2 hours. Let's go lie down."

"No, thanks. I'm fine," Annie could still feel the adrenaline running through her veins, not as much as before, but enough to know that she would just toss and turn if she even bothered going to bed. Her mind was racing too fast to even want to lie down.

"Please?"

"No," Annie stated more firmly. "Go to bed if you need to. I'm fine."

Auggie inhaled deeply and slowly let out his breath. His voice neared a whisper. "Will you at least stay with me until I fall asleep?"

Annie looked up, startled by his request, and replied shortly, "No." She ignored his disappointed look as he stood from leaning against the table Annie was seated at. He reached for her shoulder but seemed to think better of it. His hand dropped carelessly to his side as he moved toward his laptop on the couch.

"I'll set up a secure line with Calder for oh-eight hundred our time," Auggie voiced dispassionately as he typed with a little more force than necessary.

"Thanks," Annie responded quietly. Auggie nodded and walked down the hall, closing the door silently. Annie realized everything she did hurt him. Everything she did was a mistake. She couldn't even let him have the slightest of requests, having her stay in the same room with him until he fell asleep.

Annie let her head fall into her hands, elbows on the table, and groaned. She couldn't get the look of unchecked sorrow on Auggie's face from her mind. She stood up and cracked her neck. She wasn't going to get any work done with her emotions like this. She was allowing her emotions to get in the way of her work, and this shit could get her killed in the field. Maybe it was time to sleep. _Fuck all of this_. Annie made her decision and padded to Auggie's room and knocked at his door.

"Yeah?" Auggie opened the door to Auggie clad only in his gym shorts.

"I get the right side of the bed," Annie announced as she pushed past him, stripping down to her sports bra and shorts. If the lights had been on, Annie would have seen his slight smile.

Auggie climbed in on the left side of the bed, giving Annie plenty of space. He didn't think she wanted him to touch her, if her reaction at the gym was anything to go by. Auggie was stunned when he felt her fingers skim down his forearm to grasp his fingers.

"I don't know how to do this, Auggie. I don't remember how to trust anyone but myself. I don't know how to be around you anymore," Annie revealed in a hushed whisper.

"I don't know how to do this either, Annie. But I know that I want to. Until we can figure everything out, that has to be enough. Is that enough?" Auggie's doubt weighed heavily in his voice and Annie let a tear roll down her cheek onto Auggie's pillow. She squeezed his hand and pulled it slightly toward her. Auggie took the hint and moved toward the middle of the bed at the same time Annie moved. He wrapped his arms around her and breathed deeply for what felt like the first time in ages.

When the hiccuping sobs began to wrack Annie's thin form, Auggie simply pulled her closer and rubbed soothing circles onto her bare back. Every time he thought of her while she was dark, he was nearly brought to the same uncontrollable tears that she let loose right now.

He wondered if she knew how much he loved her, so much, so unbearably much. He wondered if he should tell her that he loved her, right this second, but decided it was a bad time. There seemed to never not be a bad time for them, and Auggie wondered if there would ever be a good moment for them. The way Annie curled into his chest made him hope that there would be. He kissed Annie's forehead and murmured in Indonesian, "Aku cinta kamu," so quietly that she wouldn't hear him.

* * *

"Wake the fuck up!" Sapphira slammed open Auggie's bedroom door and jumped on them both over the covers. She rested on her knees in the space she forced between them and pulled Auggie's face towards her. "August Anderson, explain to me why Joan fucking Campbell just emailed me at an address she shouldn't have: 'JC/CM/AA/AW/SH 0800 WITA.' If I didn't know any better, she would be requesting a video conference with all of us and 'CM' for two minutes from now."

"Calder Michaels. Hope your wifi really is secure, Fira. Because that is exactly what Joan is requesting," Auggie rubbed his hand down Annie's arm one last time, disappointed that he had to leave the comfort and warmth of her body.

Sapphira groaned and moved to the foot of the bed. Sapphira gave Annie and once-over and smirked at her. "Nice bra," she commented and waltzed out of the room.

"What's so special about your bra? It's just a regular sports bra, isn't it?" Auggie asked as he pulled his t-shirt over his head.

"Yeah. I think Fira was commenting more on how I am only in my bra and shorts in your bed."

"I didn't want to say anything, but now that you bring it up, I agree with Fira. Nice bra." Auggie sent her an easy smile and she returned it as she pulled on her own shirt. "Hey, Annie?" Auggie caught Annie's arm before she walked out the door. He pulled her to his chest in a tight hug. "Thanks. I know none of this is easy, but I want it to get better. It has to get better, right?"

"It can't get much worse, right?" Annie prayed she and Auggie were both right. It had to get better.

"Get the fuck out here before I have to face Joan Campbell myself!" Sapphira called from the living room.

"You ready to do this?" Annie asked and skimmed her hands down Auggie's biceps.

"As ready as I'll ever be to talk to Joan Campbell and Calder Michaels. It's a little past dinner time back in D.C. Think they had a nice family meal together?"

"It's about as likely as Joan letting Calder take MacKenzie for a ride shotgun in the Jag," Annie bantered back easily.

She took a deep breath and reigned in her mind. _Mission oriented thoughts. Let's work on getting this son of a bitch and then getting Auggie home. And maybe even getting me back too._


	19. Chapter 19

"What's the deal with you and Joan?" Annie asked as she padded toward the couch where Sapphira sat cross-legged. Auggie sat to Sapphira's left, but Sapphira crawled over him so he was sitting between her and Annie with the laptop on his knees and the Braille reader on his thighs.

"Joan and I have a curious relationship," Sapphira explained shortly and pointed at a cup of dark coffee from the table in front of Annie. "Yours. Drink."

"How so?" Annie asked as she rearranged her hair to make herself look more presentable. She took a sip of the steaming coffee and sighed gratefully. She wasn't planning on admitting it, but the quick nap she took after she cried herself out was surprisingly refreshing. She passed the cup to Auggie, who downed most of it and handed it back sheepishly. Annie squeezed his forearm to let him know there were no hard feelings, finished the rest, and set the cup on the table in front of them.

"I respect her greatly, but the last time we were in the same room, I think she broke my nose." Auggie snorted with a slight grimace but didn't add to anything Sapphira said.

"You _think_?" Annie was now intrigued.

"Best guess scenario, process of elimination," Sapphira dismissed with a wave of her hand. "She was a great mentor, superb boss, loyal operative, even a friend at times, but things just weren't the same after I got back from being held captive. With Joan, with anyone, really. I made my break from the Agency clean and civil, but that doesn't mean it didn't hurt. We haven't spoken in years, and I think she blamed herself for all the shit that went down."

"Oh," Annie murmured, not knowing what else to say. The room fell into silence with only Auggie's keyboard clicks. His screen lit up and he skimmed his fingers across the Braille reader.

"Sapphira, did you change my background image?" Auggie questioned with a hint of faked irritation as he pulled up the video conference link on part of his screen.

"No. I don't know how to use computers," Sapphira lied with false but convincing innocence. Annie looked over and saw that the background photo on Auggie's laptop was of a much younger Auggie buried in the sand with an elaborate mermaid tail made of sand covering his lower body. A black bikini top was draped over his chest and he flashed a dazzling smile at the camera. Annie suppressed a laugh.

"Annie? What's the picture?"

"What picture?" Annie winked at Sapphira, who offered a high five and a hoot of "Girl power!"

"You are both immature," Auggie announced. "Here we go. All set?" Sapphira strategically moved away from the camera on the front of the laptop so that it was only Auggie and Annie on the screen. Annie steeled herself for the serious conversation ahead of them.

Within seconds, Joan's face popped up on one side of the screen and Calder's on the other.

"Hello, Auggie, Annie," Joan greeted. "Sapphira?" Sapphira rolled her eyes but moved closer to Auggie anyway.

"Joan," Sapphira stated with authority by way of address.

"Good to see all of you. Ms. Hartanto, my name is Calder Michaels."

"Please, Sapphira will do. Or Supreme Ruler of the Free World, your choice. Thanks for getting these two out of HK, Calder."

"You know about that?" Calder asked with an amused glint in his eyes.

"Never underestimate how much I know, _Sheriff_," Sapphira replied cheekily.

"Back at you, _Krakatoa_," Calder responded with a raise of his eyebrow. Annie looked over at Sapphira. Again, 'Krakatoa' sounded familiar. Annie filed it away to think about later.

"How's motherhood treating you, Joan?" Annie asked pleasantly.

"Being a mother is great. I think I finally got out all of the crusted vomit from my hair," Joan flipped her hair over her shoulder as proof.

"Washing out someone else's puke from your hair? Sounds just like senior year spring break," Sapphira snarked.

"Sapphira, I remember where you were during your senior year spring break, and I know for a fact you were not washing out puke from your hair. Blood, maybe. But not puke." Annie glanced over at Sapphira who just laughed smoothly.

"Cute, Joan. But hey, congratulations."

"Thank you, Fira. Annie, tell me this woman is treating you all right," Joan's face showed a rare but radiant smile.

"She's been great, Joan. A little strange, but great," Annie answered with a wink at Sapphira.

"This is all so precious, and I can't wait to hear all the hot gossip, but let's get this shit done," Calder interrupted but he had a telling grin on his face as well. "Did you figure out who's after you?"

"My source says its looking that Jemaah Islamiyah is the likely culprit," Sapphira replied before Annie could open her mouth.

"Well, fuck," Calder breathed out. "You really piss off the wrong people, Walker. Explain."

"JI entertained the idea of getting to know the inner workings of the CIA, BIN, ASIS, and whoever else was on their asses trying to shut them down. That would come from Henry Wilcox who had conveniently been working as a consultant on several CIA projects. Wilcox had been funneling intel and funds to JI since at least 2002. Remember those bombings, Joan? Because we do." Sapphira continued with a pointed look. Joan looked mildly pissed off at the barb, but didn't say anything else. "Who authorized a traitor to set foot inside Langley, let alone gave him Top Secret clearance?" Joan and Calder both ignored her biting comment.

"Who have you read in?" Joan turned her head to the sound of faint crying. "Hold on," she stood up but Arthur must have said something because she sat back down in front of her computer. "Never mind. Who have you read in?"

"You two," Auggie answered like the good CIA operative he is.

"And?" Calder prompted. "You aren't going to tell me that all that intel conveniently fell into your lap."

"I called in a favor from an old friend," Sapphira cut in quickly. She wasn't sure what kind of trouble Auggie would face if he told Joan and Calder that they asked for help from a few foreign nationals before coming to them.

"Your friend American?" Calder raised his eyebrow.

"Sir, you should rethink you question if you want to give yourself any plausible deniability if shit hits the fan," Sapphira replied smoothly. Calder just nodded but didn't reply. Joan sighed and brushed her hair behind her ear.

"Calder, does it really matter? We've been after JI too. Open lines of communication between competing agencies and all that," Joan appeased. "What can we do?"

"We already have access to the CIA and Badan Intelijen Negara databases," Annie said and was met with raised eyebrows from Calder and Joan at the mention of Indonesia's intelligence agency. "We wanted to give you a heads up in case we need resources on the ground that the three of us can't handle."

"Annie, you do know that I am not quite in a place to be sending a team to raid a compound, right?" Joan questioned lightly.

"Langley is a catastrophe right now. Walker, I'm not sure even _I_ can get you resources on the ground there," Calder said as he scrubbed his hand down his face. "But I'll see what I can do when you need it. Keep the lines open, all of you. Sapphira, you may not work for me, but you are under the same rules as them. Report back. Keep your ass safe too."

"How sweet of you to think of me, Calder. I may just join up again so you'd be my boss," Sapphira's voice dripped sarcasm.

"You'd outrank me if you came back. Don't you dare take my promotions," Calder replied with a sardonic twist of his lips. Sapphira smiled back. _There really was something about Sapphira that made people like her. But outranking Calder? Just how important was she?_ Annie thought.

Joan looked away from the screen and nodded. "I have a very hungry baby to take care of. It was good to see you. All of you," Joan looked deliberately at Sapphira. "If you need something within the Agency, go to Calder but keep me in the loop. Stay safe." She signed out leaving just the three of them and Calder.

"I'll do everything I can, which unfortunately might not be much. When you have a plan of attack, run it past me," Calder requested and gave a parting salute and signed out of the video conference too.

"See. That wasn't too bad, Fira," Auggie nudged Sapphira playfully.

"Yeah, yeah," Sapphira grumbled and stood up with a look in her eye that Annie couldn't quite place. "We need to eat."

Just then, a shrill ring erupted from one of the kitchen cabinets. Sapphira reached behind a stack of plates to pull out an old burner phone as if it were a completely normal place to keep a phone. She opened the message and the phone went silent again."Never mind. We'll grab something along the way. Both of you shower and get dressed. Bring your laptops and shit. It's go time." Sapphira grabbed a bottle of water before heading to her bedroom.

Auggie started putting his laptop and Braille reader back into his messenger bag.

"I take it that was the call that we were waiting for?" Annie asked as she powered down her laptop and put the documents from Auggie's friend back in order.

"Like the Bat-Signal. The Fira-Signal. Probably the Masons with the ASIS intel. Quicker than I expected, but I guess I should raise my expectations. Fira's contacts always work quickly."

"Masons? Plural? I thought you said only Cami Mason was ASIS, and her brother owned the gym."

"Blake Mason was Australian army. He and Cami make quite the team. Even though he isn't officially ASIS, he does some contract work with them. Good friends with Fira," Auggie clarified. Annie's eyes narrowed. _Blake. Australian army. Much like the guy I met out in the middle of the ocean._ She didn't believe too highly in coincidences.

"Hmm. Okay. I'll go get ready," Annie announced and went immediately to the hot shower.

Five minutes later, Annie was squeezing out excess water from her dark hair when Fira walked through the door. "You really have no problem coming in unannounced, do you?"

Sapphira let her still-drying hair loose and wore a black button-down, jeans, and practical black boots. "Nope. I packed you a gym bag. We might spar later. You good to go? I'm itching to try out my friend's '73 Dodge Charger. I had to get a special permit for it since it's an American car and the steering wheel is on the opposite side."

"How many cars do you have?" Annie asked with a laugh at Fira's enthusiasm. She got dressed and grabbed her leather backpack with her new wallet and phone.

"Enough to get around," Sapphira replied breezily and she walked down the hall with Annie on her heels. Auggie was waiting at the door with his shoes already on.


	20. Chapter 20

"You ladies ready?" Auggie opened the door. Annie noted he held his folded cane in his left hand but didn't move to open it.

"Got Michael's Charger. Hell yeah I'm ready!" Sapphira bounded out the door, tapping Auggie's hand along the way.

"Good thing I like to go fast," Auggie replied.

They walked together to the parking garage of Sapphira's building and in the corner was a black 1973 Dodge Charger, sleek like a panther waiting to pounce.

"I didn't realize you had such an eye for cars," Annie observed.

"My brother Danny liked them. Have you seen Auggie's '67 'Vette? It's a beauty!"

"Seen it? Auggie gave it to me a few years back. It's in storage now, in case you're wondering, Aug," Annie crawled behind the front seat and buckled her seat belt in the back seat as Auggie and Sapphira buckled up in front.

"Oh, really?" Sapphira dragged out with a devilish grin and a twinkle in her eye. Auggie muttered something that sounded suspiciously like _Please don't._ "Tell me you like to drive fast, Annie."

"Is there any other way to drive a '67 Corvette?" Annie laughed. "Of course I like to drive fast."

"I called it, Anderson!" Sapphira announced triumphantly. Annie looked curiously at Auggie, who now had a blush spreading down his cheeks to his neck.

"Yeah, shut up," Auggie grumbled, but smiled nonetheless as Sapphira fired up the engine and threw the car in drive out of the garage with alarming speed.

_"Thank you, Fira. For everything." Auggie stumbled over his words, fiddling with the seatbelt. "I know you- This isn't exactly how you, I, um." He took a deep breath._

_"Auggie. Get inside that damn building before I drive straight through the security checkpoint and physically throw you out of my vehicle."_

_"Yeah," Auggie rewarded her with a small smile and a shake of his head. "Sapphira, you are one hell of a woman, you know that?"_

_"I know. Now get out of my car," Sapphira said. Both of them would deny hearing the tears in their voices._

_"Since I can't really use it anymore, can you, uh, take this for me? I don't care what you do with it. If anything, Danny would probably like it," Auggie reached into his messenger bag and pulled out a small, bulging envelope and held it in Fira's direction. She didn't take it._

_"I'm not taking your car."_

_"Fira-"_

_"I'll have it shipped here."_

_"I can't drive it."_

_"I'm not taking your car," Sapphira repeated._

_"What am I supposed to do with it here? It doesn't matter where I am, I still can't drive it," Auggie's voice was laced with bitter frustration._

_"Put it in your garage, prop it up on cinder blocks, and rev the engine every once in while." Sapphira shoved his hand back to his body. "Or give it to a beautiful woman who likes to drive fast."_

_"You're a beautiful woman and you like to drive fast."_

_Sapphira chewed on her lip in silence._

_"You're not staying in D.C." Auggie knew the answer before the words were out of his mouth. "Can you tell me where you're going?"_

_"You're a spy. You'll figure it out," Sapphira looked down. She hadn't figured that out either, just yet._

_"You can still drive it, when you come back to D.C."_

_"Beautiful woman who likes to drive fast, Auggie," Sapphira reminded and nudged his shoulder._

_"Prospects aren't looking too great. So to speak," Auggie gestured to his eyes with a self-deprecating wave of his fingers._

_"You'll get there. And when you do, you'll know just who to give the keys to. It's not me." Sapphira closed her fingers around Auggie's still holding the envelope._

_"It's not like I'm not proposing with the car. I'm gifting it to you."_

_"I refuse to accept your gift. And you could use it as a proposal. Instead of a ring, give a '67 Corvette to a beautiful woman who likes to drive fast," Sapphira forced some excitement into her voice._

_"How do you know that I'll find me a beautiful woman who likes to drive fast? I think that's pretty specific."_

_"I don't. Maybe she'll find you. But she will be beautiful and she will like to drive fast. And she will accept the keys to your car."_

_"Are you going to say something tacky about the keys to my heart, too?" Auggie joked with a chuckle. He put the envelope back into his bag anyway._

_"Get out of my car and into that building before the spies get suspicious. I'm not particularly keen on a reunion with anyone."_

_Auggie reached over the console and laced his fingers through Sapphira's. "I wouldn't be here if it weren't for you, you know? You kept me alive. Not necessarily sane, but alive."_

_"Just repaying the favor," Sapphira tried to brush off. They both knew the significance of their words, though. Auggie kept Fira alive after she returned from captivity, in a way. Fira kept Auggie alive after he was blinded, arguably after Helen died too._

_"Are you sure-"_

_Sapphira cut him off, "Beautiful woman who likes to drive fast. __I can't wait to meet her._"

_"You know I love you, Sapphira Hartanto. Always will."_

_"I love you too, August Anderson. Always will." Sapphira leaned across the console to press a gentle, chaste kiss against Auggie's lips, and before he could respond to it, his door was open and his seatbelt was off. "Now get out of my car."_

_Auggie brushed his hand against her cheek one last time, squeezed her hand, then unfurled his cane. "Wish me luck?" He asked through the open window. _

_"You've never seemed like the type to need luck. But good luck." ____Auggie flashed her a genuine smile. __With that, Auggie turned and walked into Langley for the first time since he was blinded._

* * *

Sapphira drove dangerously fast through a warehouse district close to the coast, passing some seedy looking groups of people eyeing the car like a new prize. At a stoplight, one teenage boy yelled something in Indonesian and started to approach Sapphira's side of the car. Sapphira didn't bother to respond verbally, just pulled her gun from the waistband of her jeans and held it up for the kid to see. He put his hands up and moved back to his friends.

"Sapphira, where are we going?" Annie asked tentatively. This did not look like a neighborhood they should be in. Even though they were all trained spies, it still made the hair on Annie's neck stand on end.

"Meeting place."

"Where is that?"

"Annie, if I gave you a street name would it really help you?" Sapphira smirked slightly as she looked in the rearview mirror.

"No," Annie conceded.

"It's up there. White building," Sapphira nodded her head toward a group of white buildings. "Wanna guess which one is ours?"

Annie noticed one building was blatantly better secured than the others. Some of them had wire fences around them, but this particular building had barbed wire on top and a sign that indicated electric voltage. Security cameras dotted the corners.

"Is it actually electrically charged?" Annie inquired.

"Not usually, but the sign keeps most people from even getting close. The barbed wire and cameras are for everyone else."

"Why are we meeting in such a dangerous neighborhood?" Annie was surprised that Auggie still hadn't said anything. It seemed he knew exactly where Sapphira was taking them.

"So many questions," Sapphira rolled her eyes as she took out a remote gate opener, pressed a series of buttons into the security key pad outside the car, then hit the remote. Sapphira brushed a cloth over the key pad to remove any traces of use. The barbed wire gate opened with an ominous creaking that made Annie cringe.

"Fira, you have to get that fixed," Auggie spoke for the first time since they took off from Sapphira's apartment. He seemed so deep in thought the entire ride over.

"Well, excuse me for never expecting to have to use this place," Sapphira muttered sarcastically and pulled the car into a garage that required another code. She pulled the keys out of the car and slid the seat forward for Annie to exit. She pressed a button on the wall and the garage door closed again. "Welcome to our safe safe house."

"_Safe_ safe house?"

"This is where we meet for the worst of the worst. Or, better known as, where we stash assets and witnesses when we need to. No one in their right mind would come looking in this neighborhood, so it's safe."

"Except for that time that bird triggered your alarm system," Auggie broke in.

"Yeah, we almost threw a grenade at a bird. But besides that time," Sapphira responded.

"They here yet?" Auggie prompted. He moved toward Sapphira's side of the car, skimming his fingers across the hood of the car.

"They wouldn't be parked in this garage. We'll go inside." Sapphira offered Auggie her arm and moved toward the door that led presumably inside the warehouse. Annie followed with wide eyes.

They walked through a cement-lined hallway to a metal door that required a numerical code, a verbal code "Persetan masuk," and a thumb print. Annie noticed Sapphira took out the cleaning cloth to wipe down her fingerprints from the pads again. Sapphira opened the door and led them into a surprisingly open warehouse space. She flipped on a switch and lights flickered on.

There were metal stairs to a second floor that covered half the room with a railing around the edges. There was a bed in one corner and a small kitchen area on the first floor. The center of the room held a metal worktable with bar stools around it. All around the room were metal cabinets with several high-security lock systems. Annie glanced at the windows around the room, surprised that Sapphira would choose a place that had so many windows.

"Masons aren't here," Sapphira confirmed. She caught Annie's eye and told her, "Bullet resistant, double glazed together. Short of a rocket launcher, we're fine."

Just then, the same door that they entered through swung open and a tall woman sauntered through. "Sorry it took so long. Thought we'd pick up Maccas for the Americans, since that's all you animals eat, just burgers and fries," she tossed out in an Australian accent. _That must be Cami Mason._


	21. Chapter 21

"You didn't get us McDonald's, asshole. You love yourself too much to even be in the same room as that crap," Sapphira scoffed without turning around from setting up her laptop on the center table.

Auggie moved toward the woman with a smile on his face. "Cami, how are you?" He pulled her into a quick embrace.

"You look like hell. Cameras say you were at the gym until four? I'll make coffee," Cami moved toward the kitchen area with her duffle bag. "Hey, Annie," she casually greeted as if they were old friends as she passed her.

"Hey, Cami," Annie returned with forced casualness. Cami produced a bag of coffee from her duffle bag as well as a bunch of bananas and some other kind of small brown fruit. Auggie filled up the coffee pot with water and got the coffee maker started.

"Fira, got you your fucking _salak_," Cami tossed Sapphira one of the small brown fruits and Sapphira started peeling it.

"Snakefruit," Sapphira mentioned for Annie's benefit.

Annie stood near the center table, watching how effortlessly Auggie moved around the space. He had definitely been here before. Annie used the moment to take in Cami Mason: tall and tan, probably a few years older than Sapphira, muscled like a prized fighter, with her blonde hair spiked in all different directions and held back with a simple black headband. She wore a tank top and jeans with steel toed boots.

"Blake should be here soon. We drove separately," Cami announced. "We should probably fix the main gate. Squeaks like a devil."

"See, told you!" Auggie chimed in. Sapphira just rolled her eyes and continued eating her fruit.

"So, Annie, how are you enjoying Bali? You know, besides that someone's sort of out to maybe kill you," Cami inquired politely. She sounded like she was inquiring about the weather.

"Haven't had much time for sight-seeing, but it seems fine," Annie replied.

"Nice beaches, huh?" Cami looked up with a scheming look and raised eyebrow.

"Yeah, they were nice," Annie answered simply. Cami hummed and glanced at Sapphira, who had since moved to the kitchen to grab another salak. They seemed to share some telepathic thoughts before Cami addressed Annie again.

"Come eat something. My brother's bringing actual food, but a banana will be good to ward off muscle cramps. Don't want your body to be too sore after that boxing session," Cami offered. _So she watched the videos of us working out. Not creepy_. Annie grabbed a banana anyway.

As if on cue, the door opened again to reveal the stunningly handsome Australian man that Annie met on her little ocean adventure.

"Ladies, Auggie," he greeted from across the room before shutting the door. He carried a few grocery bags and placed them on the table before pulling Sapphira into a hug and kissing her forehead. Auggie offered his hand and Blake clapped him on the back. "Looking good, man."

"Same to you," Auggie complimented wryly. Annie just stared. She was definitely an outsider to their little group.

"Hey, _Sapphira_," Blake intoned jokingly at Annie. She blushed slightly and shrugged. "No harm, no foul, Annie. I know how you spies work. Just thought it was amusing that your first choice was her name."

"I'm flattered, really!" Fira called from the kitchen area.

Annie nodded as she took his hand. "Sapphira sent you to come check up on me at the beach?"

Blake nodded with his stupid, beautiful smile. "My buddies were already there, so I just joined in on their barbecue, though."

Annie was more than a little pissed off at Sapphira's assuming attitude. She didn't need a hot, godly Australian babysitter. But then her mind flashed to the moment when she wanted to drown herself in the ocean and her anger quickly evaporated.

Cami moved forward to take Annie's hand in a late, formal gesture. "Thank you. Fira said Henry Wilcox provided intel behind the '02 bombings. A friend of mine was killed in the blast. I hope you smiled when you put a bullet through him."

Annie winced. She definitely wasn't smiling when she pulled the trigger.

"Cami, watch yourself," Blake admonished. He was far more perceptive than his brash, outspoken sister. Cami rolled her eyes. It was clear to Annie why Cami and Fira were friends.

"What did you bring, Blake?" Auggie asked, looking positively ravenous and itching to move toward the food.

"Enough for an army," Blake replied vaguely as he began to unpack the food containers from the bags in his arms. "No, seriously, we have enough supplies for a week if we can get that bloody refrigerator working again."

"Cami, didn't you fix it last time?" Fira glared pointedly at Cami, who just shrugged carelessly.

"Annie, know how to fix a fridge?"

"I can take a look, but no promises. What's wrong with it?" Annie took a deep breath through her nose, inhaling the delicious scents of the food that Blake was setting up on the center table.

"We'll figure it out later. We still have the upstairs fridge, but god forbid Fira have to walk upstairs," Cami whined playfully. "Let's eat."

They all took seats around the table and Fira passed out plates and chopsticks. They scarfed down the majority of the food in minutes, silent except for reaching for more food.

Blake was the first one to break the silence, having eaten the fastest of the group. "Living in the same apartment as two gorgeous brunettes? Auggie, man, you're living the dream."

"Annie's blonde," Auggie trailed off questioningly.

Annie responded quietly, trailing her fingertips across his bare forearm quickly. "Aug, I dyed my hair brown the day Calder shot me." Auggie winced at the callousness of her terminology. "No one told you? I've just kept it up. I think it'll stay a while longer."

For some reason, this bothered Auggie more than it probably should have. It was such a tiny, insignificant detail, because he was _blind_; he couldn't appreciate her hair color anyway. It didn't even matter what she looked like. But it was how they would share the details of their lives, no matter how tiny and insignificant; that stopped the moment she went dark. And this was a tangible example of that.

Auggie just nodded and didn't voice his actual thoughts. Blake realized he struck a nerve there, and shut the hell up fast.

"How do you all know each other?" Annie inquired. She was genuinely curious, but it was a helpful diversion from the way Auggie's face closed off from any visible emotions.

"Cami and I worked a mission early on. Blake and I built houses together. He can wire an entire three-story building in 15 minutes," Fira explained between mouthfuls of some spicy chicken dish.

"That's an exaggeration. This woman, though. I've never seen any human being climb like her. She did roofs because she weighed the least. It's a bunch of big, burly Aussie men, then Fira. She could hoist herself to the top of a hardly-built three-story house using nothing but a line of paracord and willpower," Blake laughed.

"Really? You built houses for a mission?" Annie tilted her head and reached for another chicken satay.

"Nope, not for a mission. It was between missions, on those forced vacations I had. _Decompression time_," Sapphira mocked with a haughty voice. "So I built a house a few times."

"Stop trying to downplay it, Fir," Auggie cut in. "She always did something spectacular on those weeks between missions. Built houses, taught English, dug wells. Always something to give back."

Sapphira shrugged and shied away from their looks. "I had to give back something good after taking so much. I could live the rest of my life and still never make up for the wrongs I've committed."

"I understand," Annie said simply. And she did. Annie really understood that feeling, all too well. It felt like she had worked so hard to destroy things in the world that she needed to rebuild. Maybe she would look into taking some time off to do those things with Fira.

"My favorite is when Fira works with kids. She's claims she despises kids, but she's so good with them!" Cami exclaimed excitedly. Sapphira made a face.

"What, you never thought of having kids?" Annie smiled at the exchange between the two women.

"Not until my love for Cami can transcend the laws of baby making and manifest itself in a child," Sapphira answered sarcastically.

"Aw, babe, medical technology is working on that. We'll get you pregnant with my kid in no time," Cami cooed. She slurped up another scoop of noodles.

"Fira, if you really want our genes, there's a simple solution," Blake teased suggestively with a wag of his eyebrows.

"If I'm going to bear Mason spawn, I want it to be from the strongest of the litter. Let's be honest, it's not you," Sapphira replied sweetly. Blake faked a dramatic pout before breaking back in to what Annie realized was his signature carefree smile.

A phone rang from the kitchen area. Sapphira and Cami both stood, exchanged a look, and nodded. Cami sat back down while Fira walked to the ringing phone and answered in Indonesian. She continued to the hallway for privacy on the call. Annie tamped down the flair of suspicion. None of them had done anything to lead suspicious thoughts, but she still felt strange not being in complete control of everything on this mission.

"Everyone done eating?" Cami asked as she cleared the plates anyway. She placed them in the kitchen sink and returned to the center table after flipping on the TV screen on the wall in front of Annie. She set up her laptop and waited for everyone to get their laptops out as well. Fira returned and made a quick gesture to Cami, who nodded once.

Cami pulled up a file onto the screen. "We have a lead on who we believe is the Dutch woman in contact with Ular Tanah."

* * *

**Author's Note: Thank you for reading and reviewing. And thank you to all who read my other three (very different) stories. It's great to hear from you as readers and fellow CA fans! I'm always up for a chat, so feel free to send me your thoughts in PM too. **


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